Riddick And A Dragon
by krazykiwi16
Summary: Ashley, member of the Yakuza who has no memories of her past is blackmailed by Riddick to help him find Kyra. Ashley is forced to put up with Riddick, meet strong opponents and makes sense of her dreams that are her lost memories. The three criminals do not realise that they have gotten themselves in something dangerously big and out of this universe.
1. Captured

**Hello Readers! This is going through another reedit sorry. I've written the whole story now so it should be much better :D fingers crossed, well give it another chance and enjoy!**

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"I'm not quite sure you understand what you're supposed to be doing" a woman said sternly. Melissa was a strong, authoritative yet a beautiful, elegant young woman. Her ebony black hair was securely tightened in a neat bun, adorned with jewels; she was dressed in sophisticated and carefully handmade clothes.

At this moment in time, her patience was wearing thin as she watched her sister/best friend through narrowed eyes.

"Of course I understand what I'm doing" Ashley accentuated the vowels with her tongue, giving the other woman a slightly exasperated look. Ashley was just as beautiful as Melissa with her charcoal black hair curling down to her waist and sapphire blue eyes that seem to glow in the dark grimy street.

Melissa tuts at her but continues preaching about this and that, Ashley wasn't really paying attention but in her defence she had heard the brief back at home and she found it tedious to hear it all again from Melissa's mouth. Ashley reaches into her long, black coat for a cigarette, placing it in her mouth before fumbling in her pockets for a lighter.

"Are you even listening?" Melissa asks with a hint of annoyance in her voice, noticing that her friend was losing concentration, again.

"Yes I'm listening!" Ashley insists, fluidly lighting the cigarette and taking a long drag from it.

"I want it done quickly and quietly" emphasizing the words 'quietly' Melissa very well knew the other woman wasn't exactly one for subtlety.

"Quickly I can promise ya, but quietly well….we'll see" taking the cigarette out between her lips, blowing the grey smoke into the air.

"Ashley!" she gives her a –don't mess with me- look. _I swear down that look could kill people, _Ashley thinks nervously.

"Alright, alright, no guns, no bombs, no nothing. Happy? Ya dumb bitch" handing over her many weapons to Melissa who merely frowns at her use of bad language but is unoffended by the insult as she knew that she was smarter than Ashley.

"Be careful" Ashley rolls her eyes._Sure, take all my weapons and then tell me to be careful. Cheers love_. Well if things turned for the worse and she had to fight she could always rely on her hand to hand combat.

Ashley extinguishes her cigarette beneath her shiny black boot, and with a sigh hooks her long fingers into the metal wire fence and she easily makes her way up and over it, landing perfectly, crouched on the floor like a cat. Her long, black coat billows in the night wind as she turns back to look at Melissa whose nowhere in sight, Ashley looks at her gold Rolex checking for the time. _Yep, she's definitely cutting it close, it's not professional for her to risk being late for the family alliance meetings, and I mean they are kinda a big deal. Tut tut. _

Ashley had become accustomed to Melissa seeing her off at every job she was sent out to do, it was because Melissa was always worrying, and fretting that Ashley was going to mess things up. So maybe Ashley had destroyed a couple dozen buildings but in all fairness it was all for the family and sure she was a bit dense but combat and fighting was her element. There was no reason for Melissa to worry.

With Melissa gone, Ashley walks through the industrial buildings and warehouses, concentrating on the task she has to do. One of the clan member's came to the main family, begging them to find their daughter who appears to have run away. With thorough investigation, they found that the girl was prostituting herself in the red light district, but witnesses had seen the young girl coming here, and apparently it was the last time anyone saw her.

Ashley enters an old, abandoned warehouse and explores the warehouse when she notices a distinct smell, it's not a pleasant smell but it's a smell she knows. Covering her nose with a napkin, she looks for the cause of the smell, fearing the worst. Soon enough she comes across the source of the overwhelming smell of rotting flesh, a young girl no older than seventeen sprawled out on the blood stained floor. Eyes forever open, deep stab wounds on her body, maggots finding refuge in her torn lips, her skin deathly white. It was a sad sight that someone so young and part of the family had come to such an end. Ashley heaves a sigh, the whole family will be in an uproar about this, Melissa was going to be furious, and she would ensure brutal punishment would fall upon on whoever did this. Family will always be avenged.

She had completed her task, now she had to tell Melissa what happened so she could decide what the next move was. However with the three hour long meeting back home, Melissa could not be contacted and so Ashley had to hurry to the main house and tell everyone what had happened to the young girl. Before leaving, Ashley places a tracking device on the body in case the villain who did this came back and decided to move the body.

'I'm outta here' saying to no one in particular, and hands in her pockets, she walks back through the moonlit warehouse, the shadows stirring around her as the moon moves across the sky. Ashley then stops in her tracks, and whirls round, her midnight blue eyes scanning the gloomy darkness. Someone was following her, and she was right as that someone jumps down from the rafters, landing a couple feet away from Ashley. Her body crouched on all fours like a black panther, she stands up straight and her pale skin appears to be illuminating in the shaft of light that shines down on her. Ashley couldn't help but think she was like an angel who fell from the sky_, a creepy fallen angel._

"Who the hell are you!' Ashley demands while pointing a finger at her.

The corners of the other's lip twitch upwards "It's rude to point"

Ashley just stares at her, wondering who this unknown woman was as she seemed somewhat familiar. She reaches into her pocket, at which the woman before her tenses, whipping out a handmade knife and Ashley smirks, pulling a box of cigarettes.

"A tad tense aren't ya" taking a cigarette out with her teeth, and torching the tip before taking a deep breath from it, letting the toxic smoke blow out of her nose. Ashley notices the other woman is eyeing her up and down and frowns wondering if she was searching for a weapon on her or it was an act of lesbianism but either way she felt the need to cover herself.

"Don't you know who I am?" her voice is soft, almost musical yet her eyes were gleaming with the eagerness to kill, Ashley rubs two fingers to her temple when her head starts throbbing but she answers the woman.

"A lady who has escaped from a mental hospital and is high on her own medication' her voice filled with amusement, a sly smirk on her face. The woman with the knife growls incoherent words of profanity, when a deep, baritone laugh echoes from behind. Ashley tips her head to the side, narrowing her eyes at the new person who appears from the shadows.

"I can't help but agree with her on that" a deep husky voice escapes from a man with broach shoulder, rippling muscles and chiselled features. Ashley couldn't help but think that the man was sex in personification; she shakes her head at her thoughts, swallowing thickly to prevent excessive drooling.

"Fuck you Riddick!" Ashley's eyes widen in surprise, she heard of this man. The most wanted man in three different solar systems, escaping from various maximum security prisons, he recently disappeared and people assumed he was dead but here he was, with those silver eyes and all. The woman must be Kyra, his partner in crime, formerly known as Jack.

This was a problem, a very big problem. All members of the yakuza had been severely ordered not to confront these two, the reason being since the yakuza was a underground organization that people thought died out generations ago, their existence was not known to the public and rulers of New Mecca. Riddick and Kyra were notorious and well known; clashing with them would bring a lot of unnecessary attention to the family, jeopardizing everyone.

Ashley was in quite a predicament as she was boxed in between the two and she had no choice but to confront them in order to get away, she doubted they'll let her go even if she had asked nicely. Her thoughts are then punctured when Riddick's deep voice booms across the warehouse to Kyra.

"Doesn't this woman seem like a tough one to crack? She'll be much more fun than the other bitch, I sense this bitch will put up a fight' Ashley's thick sweeping fringe covered her eyes as she listened to their conversation, her slowly extinguishing cigarette dangling from her mouth. Ashley could feel her anger rising rapidly, these two could not be left alive as they had truly slapped the family in its face.

"Shall we play your favourite game?"

"Sure, why not" Kyra licks her blade murderously, watching the unmoving girl who hadn't made a sound. _The girl's probably shitting herself _and Kyra rushes at her with that thought. Ashley spits her cigarette out, swiftly removing her coat off, tossing it at Riddick with hope it'll distract him for a few crucial seconds. Ashley dodges the knife that swipes at her, and stepping forward she bring a fist hard into Kyra's solar plexus, driving it home.

Kyra gasps in agony, she couldn't believe the slender woman held so much strength and she promptly collapsed to the floor wheezing for air. Ashley wasn't done yet, and she mercilessly gave a strong hard kicked to Kyra's gut which sent her flying a few feet away.

Ashley satisfied that Kyra was down for the count, faces Riddick who to her surprise hasn't moved. He was holding her coat with a smirk that screamed he knew something, baffling Ashley.

"You're no civilian huh? I'm impressed that a woman like you has such survival instinct"

Ashley's eyes became scorching with personal vendetta as she glared at the man before her.

"You shouldn't really underestimate women, especially if you hang out with that' and she goes to indicate the limp body which…wasn't there. Ashley then feels movement from behind, and grabs Riddick's fist just in time but he performs a well-practiced kick to her stomach, causing her to hunch over in pain. Then Ashley is suddenly engulfed in an explosion of dust as a beam falls from above and crashes down on her.

Kyra grins in delight from above, after recovering from Ashley's attack she climbed back up to the rafters and set off one of their personal made traps. The young woman never stood a chance against two skilled serial killers like her and Riddick.

Ashley was in immense pain as she choked on the thick air of dust, the beam was heavy and no matter how much she twisted and turned it wouldn't budge and she knew she was at their mercy now. She let out a grunt of pain, blood trickling down her chin as something landed on the beam above her body, adding more weight to the already heavy mass of wood that was crushing her. She shot an icy blue glare over her shoulder, realising it was Kyra who had thought it would be a good idea to land on someone who was already injured. _That bitch!_

Ashley then feels a burning pain as her hair is yanked, forcing her to stare up into the bemused, smiling face of Riddick, his silver eyes locked onto midnight blue. Ashley refuses to give him the satisfaction she was in any pain, even though she was in tremendous amounts of pain, she bears it silently, glaring up at Riddick, challenging him. He responds with a malicious smile that shows all his teeth, and playfully slides his own blade up and down Ashley's cheek, accepting her challenge.

Ashley spits, the offending liquid hitting Riddick's chin, she wasn't going down so easily without a fight but when she sees his smirk transform into a teeth bared snarl, she thinks that maybe she was too rash. _Aw fuck! I've never seen someone lose a smile so fast and I thought Melissa was someone who had a extremely short fuse. I am so dead!_

Ashley closes her eyes as Riddick pulls his arm back, his shiv clenched tightly in his hand. Then everyone hears a loud crashing, wrecking sound, the building is shaking and debris start falling as something crashes through the ceiling of the warehouse. Ashley opens her eyes, hearing the sounds of chaos around her, spotlights suddenly shine down on them which causes Riddick to howl in pain and fall to the ground, shielding his sensitive eyes. Kyra kneels beside Riddick, attempting to drag him out of the collapsing warehouse. Ashley twists her neck, wincing in pain and squinting against the bright lights and manages to see a space craft has crash landed into the warehouse. Wood, scrap metal, bricks and other debris shower down on them, knocking each one of them out cold, entombing them in a mountain of rubble.

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**This is an alternative world where Riddick takes Jack/Kyra with him after the incidents of Pitch Black, living a life of sadistic crime together.**

**Much Love :D xx**


	2. BlackMail

**Enjoy!  
**

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**_It's a bright shining day, and in a big beautiful house a woman's laughter could be heard alongside a child's giggling. A piano was playing in the background and then the music stops and everything turns darks, sounds of a child crying and a woman cackling madly erupted from the swirling shadows, instantly changing to a scene of blood, and an unmoving body._**

Ashley shot up from her bed, soaked and breathing heavily before falling back onto the pillow, eyes closing in weariness. She's seen this dream many times before and frankly she was bored of it, amnesia was a big problem; well she didn't mind losing her memories since she was content living with Melissa but she had all these recurring dreams, and she was unsure if it was a dream masquerading as a lost memory or if it was a sign of insanity. She sighed, another dream that was frequently appearing was ruby red eyes, yep just floating red eyes but she found the eyes nostalgic and comforting for some reason, though she prayed that they didn't belong to some monster or something. Other times she'll hear voices, they didn't make sense to her but she assumed it was from conversations from long ago, long forgotten in her conscious mind.

She rubbed at her temple as her head was throbbing like a bitch, and remembered she ought to write in her diary which helped to organise her thoughts and dreams/memories. She opens her eyes and squints against the bright flickering tube light above her, she frowns as she doesn't have a tube light in her bedroom, and notices the ceiling was unfamiliar and her bed was hard and uncomfortable. She sits up, wanting to scan her surroundings when she lets out a gasp as pain jolts through her from her stomach and she unbuttons her dark red short-sleeved shirt, and lifts her black vest. There is a purple bruise blossoming near the side of her slender frame, and Ashley gently massages in and around the area before diagnosing a case of badly bruised ribs, nothing was broken or bleeding from the inside.

Ashley hears a low, whirling humming which informs her that she was in a space vehicle of some kind, and was at the moment flying through space. Ashley was in a small room, with two beds, it was akin to a jail cell of sorts as it didn't have much in the room and the door could not be opened from the inside. While wondering why she here, she recalled fighting with Riddick and Kyra and something fell on her, but for some reason it was hazy and unclear and her pounding in her head immediately spiked up. _Great, as if I needed to lose more memories. _She scowls at the chain between her wrists, linking them together, scowling more at the thought that she was caught by mercenaries.

With an annoyed sigh, she swings her legs over the bed and approaches the door, banging on it loudly in hope that she gets someone's attention. Whoever caught her had made a mistake and she had to rectify that mistake through negotiation, or violence if playing nice fails.

"Morning" Ashley freezes her knocking when she hears a familiar male, baritone voice though the intercom. She blinks at the intercom in disbelief that she was caught by Riddick, and she pulls the toggle on the intercom, wanting to know what the heck was going on.

"Riddick! What the fuck? Let me out!"

"Human blood has a metallic taste to it, very coppery but cut it with peppermint schnapps that goes away. Course, that's more for winter, summer time I take mine straight" Ashley stands by the intercom, thinking that Riddick was a fucked up, sociopath.

"Um, right" Ashley was really at a lost at what to say, the other person was bat shit crazy. She hears a low rumble of laughter, and her fuse is lit when she realises the man was mocking her.

"Fuck you! Now let me out!"

"I really could let you out couldn't I? But where's the fun in that, sit tight princess and listen, I got something I need tell you"

"What? That you're a psycho" Ashley scoffs with a small smirk playing on her lips.

"Princess, don't think I appreciate your mean words" Ashley arches an eyebrow at his nickname for her

"And I don't appreciate you calling me princess"

"Whatever princess, the thing is, I lost Kyra and-"Riddick is cut off when Ashley pulls the toggle aggressively on her intercom.

"Why the fuck should I care? Let-Me-Out!" kicking at the door with each word before releasing the toggle and glaring at the intercom while Riddick watches her with amusement through the surveillance monitors.

"Princess, calm down now and hear what I have to say, I believe it's in your best interests" he says the last part, dangerously low as if he was threatening her. Ashley places a hand on her hip, and waits for Riddick to continue.

"As I was saying, I lost Kyra and therefore I need to find her but I was thinking why do it alone? I could use someone like you to help me. You catch my drift princess?" drawing out the last word with a hint of humour in his husky voice.

"Let me think about it…well now that I have thought about it, why don't you go fuck yourself!" Ashley pulls away from the door, and heads back for the bed.

"This is a nice chain you got here, would be a shame if something were to happen to it" Ashley froze, and slowly turned round and moved closer to the intercom as if she was hypnotized by it and pulled the toggle.

"What chain are you on about?" her voice was almost a whisper

"A black chain, got a dragon pendant on it"

"Where the hell did you get that?" her voice raspy in shock.

"It's important isn't it? If you want it back then find Kyra. Once I have her safe and sound, I will return this back to you. Do we have ourselves a deal"

Ashley was a member of the Black Dragons, the last remaining Yakuza that had somehow managed to persevere. That chain was important as it held their family crest, the black dragon which was a symbol of power and authority, the colour black illustrating how the family remains unseen, working from the darkness of the night. The red eye on the dragon was the symbol of protection and blood, reminding everyone in the family that to ensure the protection of the family they must be willing to spill blood, and to avenge the blood that's already spilled. It was made of real ruby, and the main body of the dragon was crafted from obsidian, a rare expensive stone. Everyone in the main family has one, and if one loses it well….let's just say you'll be sleeping with the fishes. Ashley had to get back at all costs.

"How can I trust you?"

Riddick smiles, all his teeth showing "How could you not?"

Ashley sighs, annoyed that the man was talking in circles, but she resigns herself and takes in a deep breath.

"Fine, I'll help but the moment you and her are within ten feet of each other I'm getting the necklace back, with or without violence"

"You got a deal Princess"

"Whatever man, so what the hell happened?" Ashley didn't bother asking to be let out again, she knew he wouldn't.

"….we were caught, all knocked out and then drugged but I woke up before they put me in that cell with you and let's just say our merc friends won't be waking up, ever." Riddick spins on his chair, looking down the ship where there are bodies slung on the floor, crumpled like trampled roses.

"But I did a thorough interrogation on one them before popping his artery" Ashley gulped, while Riddick twirled a bloody, severed finger in his hand before tossing it haphazardly away.

"Right…so what did you find out?" Ashley asked, not at all looking forward to working with this man.

"These men were working for someone, even they don't know who sent them but they were promised a whole lot of money to catch me and Kyra"

"Well you probably have made a ton of enemies" Ashley said coolly, leaning a shoulder on the door beside the intercom.

"But mercs being mercs decided to fuck them and bring the lot of us to prison themselves, of course they had no idea who you were but figured you were a criminal which of course is true. They dropped Kyra at Crematoria, and we were heading to Ursa Luna but not anymore"

"I'm gonna take a guess and say we're heading to Crematoria to pick up Kyra"

"Yeah…but to do that I need to get us some mercs to catch us"

"Then why kill the mercs here?"

"I needed information, mercs aren't a dying breed"

"True that…" Ashley released the toggle for the final time, and since there was nothing she could do in this room she headed back to bed, sitting up and leaning against the wall. Mulling over recent events, someone was after Riddick and Kyra, would that mean they will come after them? This was quite a situation; she had to do things quietly, if she could.

"Sleep tight Ashley" the intercom rang out and Ashley gave a harsh finger to the camera and settles down to sleep. Riddick sits by the controls, papers and photographs in his hands, smiling widely, his bloody hand sweeping over a photographic image of a woman, smoking in the street, unaware that a photo was taken, her name was Ashley Ryoku. Riddick had purposely forgot to tell the young woman that they were also ordered to catch her and that they were going to take her straight to the people who wanted her after dropping him at Ursa Luna. Whoever these rich men were they had done a lot on research into all three of them and he was intrigued to found out why. Not to mention how all three were caught at the same time? Was it coincidence or were they set up? He was looking forward to the storm of events that was clearly going to come, he chuckled loudly in enjoyment.

_Let's find us some mercs _

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__**Please Review...  
**


	3. Drugged

Ashley sighed in her sleep, content and at peace, forgetting that she was on her way to Crematoria.

_**The day was bright and the birds were chirping, a woman's laughter could be heard, alongside a child's giggling. The child was only four years old but it was clear the child was intelligent for her age as she played the piano which such ease, happily creating music that her mother loved. It really was a picture perfect life. Then the room instantly changes into despair, the young girl was begging her mother to wake up, to wake up and take her away from the mad lady that was laughing behind her, but she wouldn't wake up, she couldn't. The toddler wiped her tears away, smearing blood on her face as she continued to try and wake her beloved mother. **_

Ashley groans in her sleep from the unbearable pain in her head.

"_**How boring baby sis" the lady behind had finally stopped laughing staring down at her dead sister who she happily killed earlier, she then turned her attention to the snivelling child that was desperately trying to wake her up. The lady gave a crazy smirk; she grabbed the hair of child and threw her like she was a football into the book shelf behind her. The small body fell to the ground, shelves and books crashing around her, she curled into a ball, wailing at the loss of her mother and the enormous pain she was in, she wanted it to stop, and she couldn't understand why this was happening. What could a four year old do?**_

"_**Hey Maria" the woman whispered eerily, when her name was called the child squeaked and recoiled away from the woman, wanting the wall the swallow her up, the woman who was her aunt kneeled in front of her smiling. But it was a smile Maria could never trust, she could only shut her eyes in horror as the lady reached for her, and she squeaked again when a hand was placed on her head.**_

"_**Why don't you try calling me mummy?" the lady whispered, her voice raspy. Maria just whimpered, eyes shut tightly, tears streaming down her face. The woman's smile faltered and she scowled at the girl, and then she looked at the dead body behind her. She snapped and shoved the girl to the ground before standing up and she kicked the tiny body.**_

"_**OH YOU TOO HUH?" another kick, another wail of pain.**_

"_**WHAT'S SO GOOD ABOUT THAT WOMAN ANYWAY!"**_

"_**EVERYONE FELL IN LOVE WITH HER! DID YOU KNOW YOUR FATHER USED TO BE MINE! BUT THAT BITCH SISTER TOOK HIM AND MARRIED HIM! HE WAS HAPPY THAT OUR BABY DIED! HE HAD AN EXCUSE TO DIVORCE ME! HAD ME SENT TO AN AYLSUM!"**_

"_**WHEN I CAME BACK, HE WAS MARRIED TO THAT BITCH YOU WERE THERE TOO! IS THERE A PRO-" she was brought her bloodied knife down on the small, broken body.**_

"_**M-M-Mumm-y!" the woman stopped when the child grabbed her leg, calling her Mummy. Maria coughed, she couldn't move, it hurt too much to move but she wanted the shouting to stop.**_

"_**M-Mummy" she tried calling again, more loudly, praying the woman will leave; she was then enveloped by the woman, who was crying tears of happiness.**_

"_**You called me Mummy? Yes you did, good girl. Oh dear you're all injured, we've got to get you to a hospital, then when you're all patched up we'll go to our new home" the woman said in a sickly sweet voice, no sign of that mad demon from earlier. The girl's heart stopped right there. She was going to live with this woman? This violent woman? But Maria couldn't say anything though as she succumbed to the exhaustion her body had to go through just to survive.**_

Ashley was beginning to sweat feverously, her eyebrows furrowed at the images in her mind.

_**Maria is eight now, walking around eggshells due to the crazed woman called Dark, who she had been living with since said woman killed her own mother. She flinched when she heard footsteps behind her; she turned around but was immediately backhanded by her aunt, she bore the pain like she was taught to and looked up at the lady in front. Her eyes cold, and piercing through her,**_

"_**I heard from your teacher you gave an interesting speech the other day" her voice soft but it was too soft; Maria knew that her aunt was really angry. Maria nodded, earning another ear ringing slap.**_

"_**I tell you not to say a word but you never listen do you? If you keep talking you'll tell everyone our secrets" Maria shakes her head furiously, trying to convey that she would never talk about her mother's death or Dark's job, she was frighten of the consequences.**_

"_**Seems like you need a more severe punishment" grinning gleefully, enjoying torturing the young child that was a copy of her baby sister.**_

_**More severe? Maria was worried, her punishment was always a beating and then locked in the cellar for a week without food or water, was her aunt going to make it two weeks? But she couldn't be more wrong about the horror that was going to befall her. With a vice like grip on her wrist Dark dragged her down the cellar tossing her on the floor, Maria fell onto her hands and knees, prepared for the onslaught of beatings but instead,**_

"_**Take your top off" Maria looked up at her aunt in confusion but she did it anyway, the lady hated repeating herself. Was standing there half naked in the freezing cellar was her punishment?**_

"_**Now turn around and place your hands on the walls your back facing me" and she did with no question, but she glanced back wondering what she was going to do, it can't be any worse than she's had to put up before. Dark then leaves the cellar and returns holding something long, it trails along the ground in a black, serpentine streak. Maria stares at it, confused and looks away and then it hits her. It was a whip. In realization she looks back in shock, a tremor jolts through her body and she starts shaking terribly. Her mouth drops, refusing to believe she was going to be whipped like an animal. There's no way….it would kill her…she must be reasonable…Dark's trying to scare her, yeah that's it. She wants to protest but she knows that she's not allowed to speak, ever. The reason why she was being punished now, but she loved school so much she spoke, school was the place she felt safe and she could forget the horrors of living at home with the devil woman who she's been forced to call her mother. Dark watches Maria's reaction in delight, watching as her understanding dawns and the blood drains from her face with her obvious quivering and whimpering.**_

"_**Face forward darling" Dark's voice is venomously sweet.**_

_**Maria hiccups, and forces her head forward, all time has frozen as she waits for the blow**_

_**Dark moves closer, dragging the whip along the ground, pleasure obvious in her face.**_

"_**Never disobey me. If you don't want this to happen again, don't ever use that little mouth of yours to talk. You are my daughter; it's your obligation to follow me"**_

_**Maria wanted to scream that she understood and she would do whatever Dark wanted but she couldn't. It wouldn't stop the sadistic woman behind her, Maria pants in fear, her mouth dry as her heart pumps loudly, and she has to fight to control her bladder.**_

_**She hears the whip whistling through the air, Maria bites her teeth together, eyes closed, thinking it won't be so bad. But of course she's wrong. As the leather smacks against her skin so loudly that it echoes in the room, Maria's body is wrecked by tremors of pain, and she screams as if she's been sliced open, sharp knives sticking into her body. Dark draws back her arm for another blow; Maria is in anguish, her face shiny with tears and snot, waiting. The second blow is much worse that the first, bearing even more of the white hot agony, her body seizes again. The sounds of pain that come from her mouth are squeals and screams, her legs are wobbly unable to hold her body up but she relents and grips onto the wall. Maria gulps back tears but with every lash that falls, the tears flow non-stop, soon her back is mauled under the blows, she can see her pool of blood below as the runny ooze of blood drips down the curve of her spine, soaking her leggings. But Dark is ruthless and the torment continues, Maria feels like the lashes are striking against solid bone now. Maria wants nothing but the pain to stop, she doesn't want to live anymore, she's lost her will. That headstrong will that has kept alive for so long, now in tatters, Dark finally stops. Panting heavily as if it was a burden to cause Maria to go through the pain, but she's satisfied at her piece of work, relishing the fact that the kid would never disobey her again.**_

"_**Stay here for tonight and tomorrow we'll get you patched up, okay sweetie night night" and she goes up the steps, shutting the door behind, locking it. Maria is exhausted and limp, her back stinging from the deep welts and cuts, she accepts that she could never escape from this hell. She had no choice but to follow Dark into her murky, shadowed world, and so from that day on Maria lived as Dark wanted to. Dark smacked everything into her, how to pick pocket, steal, hack, using weapons and worse of all how to kill. Dark's murderous lifestyle was being indoctrinated into the young Maria, making her an expressionless killing machine. Maria was falling into darkness, deeper and deeper, evil consuming her very soul**_**.**

Ashley couldn't watch any longer, and reached for the small fragile girl, wanting to catch her from falling into the plummeting darkness. As soon as she grabbed Maria's hand she was suddenly yanked into reality by two strong hands, and blinked as she looked up into two silver eyes.

Riddick awoke to the sounds of Ashley panting and whimpering, obviously distressed at what she was seeing in her mind, and she had stopped breathing, as if she was choking on her fear and for some reason unknown to him, Riddick decided to wake her up.

"R-Riddick?" she wiped her forehead of sweat, and got her breathing back to normal.

"Do you want me to knock you out cold?" he was pissed he had to wake up and annoyed at himself for helping.

Ashley shoots a glare at Riddick before slapping off his concerned hand on her shoulder.

"I'm fine thanks, just a bad dream is all" she huffed, remembering her dream but she frowns at the presence of Riddick.

"Why are you here?"

"I landed on some planet, and luckily snooped out a few mercs and well…." He leans in close, his mouth hovering beside her ear, his warm breath sending tingling shivers down her spine.

"They are going to accompany us all the way to Crematoria, so just play along" and with a wink he saunters back to the other bed that on the opposite side of the room.

Ashley sits up, scratching her head and digs deep in her pockets of her grey, black skinny jeans and finds a rumpled box of cylinder sticks and a lighter, she extracts one with her teeth and she lights the tip in one fluid motion, relishing the sweet air of nicotine that calms her down, dispelling the headache she had.

Ashley couldn't believe it, but she couldn't deny the fact that little girl was her. The long healed scars on her back were beginning to ache and it was proof that very detail and vivid dream was in fact a memory, but she was perplexed on how she remembered things from when she was four_, could people remember the time when they are four?_ But there was one important thing; she hadn't changed personality even though her traumatic memory showed that Ashley also known Maria had a very different personality and that was important to Ashley as she was happy the way she was now, well working with Riddick is a major speed bump at the moment but she'll be fine. The dream also explained why she's very adept at fighting and other devious and criminal acts, but Ashley's wonders how she met Melissa when she's torn from her thoughts when the door swooshes' open and a man is stood there with a very big gun pointing into the room, very much on guard.

"Rise and shine my beautiful pay days" he had curly brown hair, and a beard that forms a vertical line on his chin, smiling gleefully at them

"You're the one who caught Riddick?" Ashley asks, tossing her stubbed out cigarette on to the floor.

"Yes I am, and why is a lovely thing such as yourself caught by that barbarian"

Ashley blanched, her lips pursing together in confusion not sure what to say when Riddick speaks up for her

"She wasn't caught, she works with me and she was just here as punishment" a creepy smile on his face

"Yeah…I've been…bad?" Ashley answered lamely.

The mercenary raised an eyebrow, he obviously didn't believe them but he had one criminal that was worth a lot of money, and the other who could be worth something and so he took out two liquid filled injections which grabbed both the inmates' attentions.

"What is that" Ashley points at the injection in his hands, wary of the suspicious unknown liquid.

"This? This is just a little something to make the two of you sweet and docile till you're safe and secure in your slice of paradise that is Crematoria" and he takes a step towards Riddick, gun pointing at him and his eyes sweeping between the two of them. Riddick holds his arm out without question and the needle sinks into skin and he lies on the bed, getting comfortable. Ashley figured he was only being compliant because he was eager to save Kyra, making Ashley rethink about Riddick's character _the sociopath is actually a human, somewhat. _

"You're turn pretty"

The mercenary is standing before Ashley and she hesitantly holds out her arm, nervous about the needle but she lets it prick into her vein and notices that Riddick is already knocked out. It isn't long before the drug flows throughout her body and her vision becomes blurry but before she enters a deep sleep she briefly notices the vibrations of the engine slowing down and then she's notices nothing at all.

Meanwhile back in New Mecca, Melissa was standing before the destroyed warehouse, furious that Ashley had caused another scene and not to mention nowhere to found. Though Melissa knew a space craft landed and it possibly belonged to bounty hunters, but she knew that Ashley would be more than okay. The woman was practically a human weapon with a cunning and logical mind despite her recklessness and constant forgetfulness. Melissa's men emerged from the wreckage with two stretchers covered in a white cloth, and she revealed the first one which was sadly the young daughter of the clan member. With a click of her fingers they moved the body into the vehicle and with curiosity she uncovered the second body, it was a woman. Melissa checked her pockets for any forms of ID and saw that she was a mercenary and not a very good one since there was no signs of her putting up a fight but the merc had been dead for days now and was killed by a completely different murderer and this caused Melissa to think didn't take Melissa long to come to a decision.

"Get a craft ready, I'm following after my right hand"

"Shall we escort you?"

"I'm perfectly capable of finding her alone; just tell the Head I'll contact him shortly"

_Something is happening out there, and Ashley better not cause a riot but knowing her she will. _

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_Review please! :D  
_

_xx  
_


	4. Within Dreams

Ashley was spiralling down the dark abyss that was her unconscious, images zooming past her, some familiar and others not so familiar. Ashley braces herself when she crashes through chains and a memory is unlocked and she finds herself watching at a young child with short cropped hair, her body covered in blood who was staring down at the lifeless body of Dark. Ashley was in the room with them, soaking all the emotions but she wasn't noticed at all, she was a ghost to them, it was like she was watching a movie.

_**The lifeless body of Dark was covered in countless punctures, each flowing with dark, red blood. After six years of abuse and torment, Maria had snapped and used the very skills Dark taught her to kill the woman, driving all her sadness, fear, anger and loneliness into each stab wound. There were no tears, the girl had learned long ago not to cry and she knew in her heart that Dark wasn't worth the tears but she felt a sense of lost and regret. Cruel as Dark was, she did to some degree looked after her even though there was the twisted part when she told Maria who to kill but even so Maria was dependent on her. Using her highly honed body strength she dragged Dark's body to the garden, struggling a little bit and spent the whole night digging a hold big enough for Dark's corpse and by dawn she had pushed the body in and covered it up. Maria was at a loss at what to do and so she sat in front of the grave, drawing her knees in and resting her head on them. **_

Ashley watched the young girl just sit, never moving, slowly starving and withering away, it was heart wrenching to watch her younger self stay there because they was no one in this universe for her and no matter how many times she reached for the girl she couldn't give her a hug and tell her that everything will be okay, then a tall dashing lad with auburn red hair that short spike up slightly and had hazel brown eyes, a cigarette between concerned lips. Ashley could see well defined muscles beneath his black t-shirt with a vest style gun holster over it and a black leather jacket over that with dark blue straight cut jeans and was slowly approaching the girl.

_**The reason why this man was in the garden was because he man was curious about the only house on the street that all of a sudden there were no signs of life, he personally didn't know the people but there was no denying that a considerable amount of child abuse was going on as he often heard the wails of a child in pain. Rumours went round that a rich couple lived there with a child when suddenly the father vanished then a year later the wife died too, and another woman moved in, taking her of the orphaned child. It was around that time that the man and his friends moved in nearby but they had they own problems to deal with and so weren't exactly a bunch of good Samaritans to stop it though. Though the man would breathe a sigh of relief whenever he saw a glimpse of the child walking in and out looking relatively unharmed. But for the last two months he hadn't seen the child nor woman and the house had become deathly quiet.**_

_**Following the trail of dried blood that led from the living room, he thought that maybe the woman killed the child and ran away but instead he saw a silhouette of a child curled up into a ball sitting amongst the wild, overgrown garden that had become akin to a miniature forest. He knelt down beside the very still child, and he could see the mossy mould of dirt. **__A grave? So the woman died and there was no one to watch the kid? So he's been here all this time. __**For some reason the man took the child for a boy since the child had tucked into a ball, and covered in layers of grime and filth, with long matted hair; the red head reached out to touch the kid**_

"_**Hey I'm Matt" but froze immediately. The child twitched, a single blue eye glowing sinisterly, watching Matt with a wary, hunted look between thick strands of black hair, a blood stained and rusty knife pointing at him. A silent warning to go away. **_

_**Matt felt quite annoyed that he had gone out of his way to help the child but that help was thrown back in his face and so decided to leave.**_

"_**Later, kid' hands in pockets, he turned his back on the child.**_

Ashley who was watching glowered angrily at the red haired man for leaving the child who needed help, giving a very rude hand gesture as she floated above the child.

_**Matt froze when he heard a cough, a harsh, dry hacking cough from the tiny body behind him, and he slapped himself. He was being pathetic and cruel, and was no better than the woman who abused the child. The kid was hungry, hunger made all humans feral, survival made humans feral and he admired the fact that this kid had just about survived. **_

_**Turning back around he rummaged in his pockets, hoping he had something edible and found half a bar of chocolate, probably not the most of nutritious of foods but it would have to do for now, and crouched back down and held it out to the child, determined to be patient this time.**_

_**The child flinched when the man returned, gripping the knife tightly, watching him cautiously but her eyes snapped to the bar of chocolate, burning with desperate greed. Then like a vulture she grabbed it as quick as she could biting into it ravenously, gulping it down without chewing until she felt something weird between the mush of sweet chocolate in her mouth. She chewed slowly, searching and then she promptly spat out a bit of foil wrapper which floated lazily to the grassy ground which Matt had found hilarious and fell back in laughter, clutching at his ribs, ignoring the new crouched stance of the child who was startled by the sudden outburst of laughter.**_

"_**Take it slow and easy" wiping tears from his eyes, still chuckling. The feral child glanced at the man; her brain was whirling back to life, understanding those words, working furiously to save her skeletal body, sending signals for her arms to remove the foil wrapper that was being an annoying obstruction the yumminess inside. But since her arms had turned into nothing but skin and bone she was struggling to remove the packaging which Matt saw, and he slowly reached over and removed the wrapper away. The child watched with curiously how his skilful hands moved, and she was grateful and ate it but with less ferocity. Maria, for some reason felt like she could trust the stranger beside her or maybe she was took weak and out of action that she couldn't sense danger anymore.**_

_**Matt was surprised, as he expected the kid to snarl in protest or anything but no, just waited patiently till the wrapper was removed, and he could sworn the child gave a small nod of thanks.**_

_For a feral child the child wasn't so feral,_ _**Matt thought as he looked at the young, half-starved child with endearing affection ignoring the filth and the rancid smell. He wanted to take the child home, but there was the slight problem of how to do that. He tried talking, maybe 'he' could understand,**_

"_**Hey, why don't you come back with me, there will be food and a proper bed for you" Maria gazed at the man, her brain taking a long while to process the words. The moment she understood what those words meant, instinct immediately took over, overruling her worries of leaving Dark. She wanted more food and staying here wasn't going to give her that and this man hadn't harmed her in any way. She lived with Dark, who could be any worse than her? She was going to take a leap of faith.**_

Ashley crossed her fingers, hoping the girl would take the kind man's hand, for Ashley it really was like watching an emotional movie.

"_**Umm, I'll come back tomorrow" he didn't hear an answer, maybe the child couldn't speak or understand what he was saying but he'll definitely come again with more food. He stood up, and turned his back on the child, he heard a soft thud and a little gasp of surprise from behind, he looked back over his shoulder and saw the 'boy' was on all fours. Matt immediately realised that the kid took a step forwards but 'his' legs were next to useless. He was very happy, and with a beaming smile he bent down and held a hand out. Maria hesitated but something about the man before her was soothing, she thought he was a shining ray of light and that smile, it sent a warm, fluffy feeling through her body, it reminded her of a time long ago where things were happier.**_

_**Matt carried her all the way to a little secluded cul-de-sac, with run down houses and warehouses. This is where Matt and his gang lived, he had practically an army of about eighty young delinquents, all needed in this highly dangerous business of guns, drugs, alcohol and girls. Maria watched in awe at how busy it was, men carrying boxes, laughing, talking and smoking.**_

"_**Baby, I've missed you" a seductive, musical voice called out to Matt, and Maria saw an extremely beautiful and voluptuous woman with long luscious black hair that seemed to dance around her. She was wearing an intricately designed kimono, the front wide open, exposing one of her shoulder and much of her milky white breasts; she stood out in the sea of men.**_

"_**Hey Aoi"**_

"_**Ara,ara" her foreign language slipping out as she stares at the feral child on Matt's shoulder, who hides, snuggling her face into Matt's soft hair, embarrassed at the amount of skin the woman in front was showing.**_

"_**And who is this little stray you picked up?"**_

"_**This is the kid that's been screaming at that house, you know the one?" chuckling a little at the ticklish feeling of the kid hiding in his hair.**_

_**Her beautiful face turns to worry,**_

"_**I'm surprised you of all people saved him" she too thought Maria was a boy.**_

"_**How mean, I've always wanted to save the kid, I just got…side-tracked by other things, like you for example" Matt winked at the beautiful woman, who smiled flirtatiously at him.**_

"_**Anyway, will you help me clean the kid up? I'm not sure how to take care of half-starved kids"**_

"_**Sure, how could I say no to such a cutie" smiling at the still hiding Maria.**_

_**Entering one of the houses, they headed up for the bathroom; Matt placed the still silent child on a stool, and let Aoi fix 'his' hair. Maria jerked a little when she saw the scissors but even though she was intimidated by the woman's beauty her brain was telling her she could trust her. Maria closed her eyes, a signal that it was good to go; Aoi thought the child was very intelligent for someone who was a feral child. Matt was leaning against the door, in deep thought.**_

"_**We need to give him a name" he said, voicing out his thoughts**_

"_**Really now? He's not a mere pet, he probably has a name" lifting the discoloured, tattered top off the child.**_

"_**I doubt that devil woman gave him a name" he grumbled, Aoi giggled finding it cute how quickly Matt had got attached with the 'boy'; she reached for the bottoms when she was stopped by a small hand.**_

"_**What about Ash? That's a manly name, and no one else here has that name" Aoi looked at the child, noticing that the thin, bony face was blushing, shaking her head and glancing back at Matt. Oh? How could she not have noticed?**_

"_**Make that Ashley" she said, humour in her voice as she stood up and approached Matt.**_

"_**Ashley? Isn't that more of a girl's name-hey! Wait!" Aoi shoved Matt out of the bathroom.**_

"_**A pure lady doesn't undress in front of anyone"**_

_**'Isn't it late for yo-oh the kid's a girl?' he asked, shocked.**_

"_**Yes and she kindly requested that you wait out here, we'll be back" and she slams the door on his face, confused but lighting up a cigarette he decides to make the kid some food.**_

_**It wasn't long before Aoi came downstairs with newly named Ashley, who was much cleaner, her hair cut into a bob with a side fringe that was clipped back with a cute bow clip. Wearing one of Matt's shirts which was far too big for her but will have to do for now but she was still so skinny.**_

"_**I'll bring some suitable clothes for her tomorrow" lifting the girl and putting her on a chair.**_

"_**Is the bow really necessary?" Matt asked, looking at it with contempt.**_

"_**She's a girl, of course it's necessary" Aoi countered matter-of-factly.**_

"_**Whatever but at least she's all cleaned, now to fatten her up. Here you go" placing a bowl of hot soup and fresh bread in front of her. Maria couldn't believe there was actual food in front of her; she glanced at Matt wondering if he was alright to eat. He seemed to have understood what was going on in her mind and nodded a yes to her, happy when he saw the twinkle of happiness in her eyes and the beaming smile on her face as she ate the food, making cute soft sounds of delight.**_

Ashley looked down at the scene, relieved that she was taken in by some kind people, and knew that things will be looking up for her younger self.

_**Moments later Matt accidently drops a glass of juice over Ashley but to their horror Aoi had to leave for work and not to mention she found their expressions funny. Now they were in the bathroom, Matt trying to get Ashley to remove her drenched clothes but she was adamantly refusing to. **_

"_**Come one Ash, aren't you feeling sticky? I swear I'll be quick and I won't look" Ashley huffed and stubbornly turned her nose away, annoyed Matt pulled at her orange juice soaked top and Ashley struggled to keep it on and after a few moments of battling, Matt had finally removed the top. Matt smiled victoriously while Ashley squeaked and covered her bony, premature body, averting her eyes away waiting for Matt to hurry up and give her a new set of clothes. However Matt was hypnotized by the many scars that adorned her body and not in a good way. He could see stabs wounds, burns, scratch marks and stared in horror at the gunshot wound on her shoulder, and he then notices the healed welt starting from her hip, disappearing round her waist to her back. He grabs a new shirt but he slowly spins the clueless Ashley round and supressed a yell of dismay, but he put the clean shirt around her covering the healed whip marks on her back. **_

_This girl was lashed? An adult would die from these wounds but this kid survived! How young was she when that crazy bitch whipped her!_

_**Matt was furious at how cruel Ashley's last guardian was but the focus was to get the kid back to a normal weight and maybe get her to start talking again but he enveloped the girl in a tight hug. Ashley was going to wrench herself away but it was comforting and warm and so embraced his touch, getting sleepy while Matt thought that he would ensure that life would improve for this girl. **_

Ashley wiped a tear from her eye when she was suddenly pulled away from the scene which faded into blackness and then she awoke to the harsh stench of sulphur made her nauseous. Ashley blinked a couple of times, and clutched her hand to her chest, the air was burning, was it even oxygen? Ashley inhaled slowly and deeply and realised where she was.

_Oh Fuck! I'm in Crematoria! _

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_I think the action starts now! :D  
_


	5. Crematoria

**Thank You To Those Who Reviewed! Much Love To You All! Mwah! **

**Enjoy!  
**

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Ashley's eyes hammered open and she gasped in the sulphurous, burning air that was harsh on her lungs as she's taken down to the heart of Crematoria by her five captors. While standing patiently in the lift and trying to ignore the heat she goes over what she saw, she found the mind-dream-thing unreal and confusing, wondering what could have caused the sudden surge of memories.

Ashley also wonders what happened to Matt and Aoi, and hopes that they are still around, she felt close to them, more so since they were the ones who christened her 'Ashley' and she wanted to thank them for everything. The lift stops and Ashley is yanked forward and out of the lift, stumbling a bit but she steadies herself.

"Keep moving!" and she's roughly shoved forward, she gives an angry glare over her shoulder but she carries on walking, roasting in the hot air. The six people then stand before a fully reinforced door which whooshes open and they enter a grimy, steamy shitty excuse of an office. Ashley welcomes the slight breeze from the many fans but it doesn't cool down her body, as sweat drips down her face, sliding down her neck.

Ashley observes the prison guards, their skin shiny from sweat and they were equipped with guns when the curly hair mercenary who drugged her suddenly invades her field of vision.

"Hey cutie, I forgot to introduce myself, the name's Toombs" pointing at himself, Ashley ignores him, wiping a chin on her shoulder.

'What's your name?" he insists, getting close to her face. Ashley scowls and takes a step away from him but states her name.

"Ashley"

"Got a last name Ashley?"

"Nope" and she turns her eyes to the guards by the computer, one guard types something into the computer and after a while of searching he turns to Toombs, shaking his head.

"Sorry guys, we don't hand out cash to unknown strays" Ashley frowned at his insulting words, she wasn't a stray.

Toombs bares his teeth at the guy with a dark look on his face, completely disregarding the guns aimed at him, but his crew also lift their weapons too. A showdown could start any minute and Ashley was right in the middle of the crossfire, _just fucking perfect!._

"Hey come on man, this girl must cost a bit if she was with Riddick" Ashley gasped as she remembered that someone who should be here wasn't here. _Where the hell is Riddick? Shouldn't he be here opening a few arteries! Damn! I can't lose him, not when he's got my important pendant!_

"Just bring Riddick, alright" the worker turns his back on Toombs, the conversation over but not according to Toombs who reaches out and grabs the guy by the back of his head, squishing his face into the table beside them, breaking it in two. Blood erupts everywhere as the man howls in pain from his nose, and a dozen guns cock harshly. _And here I thought Riddick was insane!_

"This is how it's gonna go down, I'll bring back Riddick and you'll pay me for both the girl and Riddick. You have till I get back to make your decision" addressing the guards and workers with such intimidation that they lower their weapons, surprising Ashley who then flinches back when Toombs turns his attention from the guards to her, a creepy, dangerous smile on his face. He reaches out towards Ashley who thought her head was going to be bashed in but Toombs removes the chains from her hands, the blood rushing back into them. Ashley rubs her hands, muttering in irritation when she's suddenly grabbed by Toombs who whispers into her ear.

"Keep your fine ass safe princess…for at least an hour or so" and he lets go of her and leaves, tossing a wave over his shoulder while she stands there looking dumbstruck and somewhat annoyed and confused. Her elbows are gripped tightly by two guards and she's taken to the edge of a very deep pit, with a loud gulp she looks down and she could see a crowd down there, looking very lively.

One guard locks titanium shackles on her already bruised wrists and the other guard pushes her into the pit, cackling in glee. Ashley closes her eyes expecting a plummeting fall to her death but she peeking one eye open she found herself hanging in the air, slowly descending deeper and deeper into the pit. Wasting no time she immediately swung back and forth and using her abdominal strength she brought her legs up, flipping herself upside down and hooked her feet into her new restraints. Ashley stilled for a moment when she heard the roar of the crowd below her become louder, signalling that she was nearing the ground. Ashley used all her strength to pull herself from the chains, using her body weight and the chains snapped from the pressure and she fell to the ground, landing in the middle of a fight or more precise a riot amongst the criminals.

Ashley then performs the perfect roundhouse kick, slamming a booted foot into the face of a would-be attacker knocking him out instantly. However her leg is yanked down and she crashes to the fall, she tries to get up but another inmate straddles her waist, pinning her down to the ground. Ashley snarls, spitting into the face of the unknown man and her hands gripped something metal and hard, and with no restraint she smashes the man's head in.

Ashley swiftly curled her body up, and using her hands she pushes herself into the air, her back arching, as if she was a spring and she lands skilfully onto her feet, a bloodied spanner in her hand. Ashley's dark blue eyes stared at the men, who surrounded her, and she prepared her stance and lunged forward, catching a man in the temple so hard that he flew airborne but she didn't see where he landed as she attacked the next inmate. Ashley carried on fighting, fending off murderers and criminals using her strength and agility, her body was a blur of force and violence, but it wasn't long before her lungs were deflated from the lack of oxygen and her skin was torn and bleeding, her muscles screaming in anguish. Her wrench painted crimson and broken as she left the other half imbedded in the stomach of an inmate.

Someone had crept from behind but Ashley was too late to realise but she turned round to see him make a pained sound, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth and he fell to the ground with an axe stuck in his back.

"Us convicts 'av a code, a sign av respect for each other" a Irish voice flowed from a unknown man who appeared from nowhere.

"Dees scum 'owever" the red haired man kicked the man on the floor in the face, spitting on him before continuing, approaching Ashley.

"…av naw code, naw 'onour, willin' ter work for dohs shoite guards, spyin' on us, tattlin' ter dem"

The red head was now in front of Ashley, who was heaving heavily and removing her red shirt, wiping her face down before tying it around her waist, her black curly hair had turned wild in the humid heat, falling loose over her shoulders and in her face.

"So, whaich wan ye lassie? Scum? Or a convict" sliding out a massive machete from his hip, a dangerous smile on his face as he stared at Ashley's orbs of deep sea blue, sliding the tip of the blade along her cheek. Ashley sighed angrily, pulling her face away from the deathly, sharp blade.

"No need to worry my good man; I ain't staying here for long" running a hand through her hair, flicking it over her shoulder. The man merely scoffed but gave a grin and slid his blade back into his hip, and Ashley dropped her broken wrench, respect had formed between the two convicts.

"De name's Aedan" thumbing to himself, and holding his arms apart he said loudly,

"Welcome ter Crematoria"

Ashley followed Aedan through some dug through corridors, even within the shade it wasn't cool and the humid heat still engulfed her, causing her fringe to stick to her forehead in the immense heat, her sweat practically steaming off her. Aedan told her to sit on a crumbling rock that stood outside a jail cell, which she did and waited for him to return with bandages and healing salve, tending to her wounds.

"Thank you, you wouldn't have any water by any chance, or is that asking for too much?"

"'Aha, sorry but dis is a prison, yer won't fend any luxuries down 'ere in dis 'ell"

"Darn it" Aedan chuckled at her sarcastic words, he found this new inmate to be quite entertaining, and not to mention pretty.

"You're a pure gran' figher lass" Ashley had no idea what the charming man had said but she smiled and said thank you anyway, gasping in pain when the salve was placed into her wounds.

"Miss, yer were sayin' dat yer weren't staying' 'ere long, ye plannin' ter escape?" carefully applying bandages around her bruised wrists.

"Yeah…is there a way?" whispering low, unsure if there was surveillance down here or not.

"Aye, thar's a way. Up de pit, usin' de rope, but thar's many guards up dare, yer won't make it. Thar's only a fool's chance"

"I'm no fool but I should be fine" but in order to escape she had to locate Riddick first but then she looked up when footsteps approached her, it was an old man, saying something in a booming voice, the language he spoke was old and primal, Ashley didn't understand what he was saying. He was wrinkled with yellow eyes and his teeth brown and broken, pointing at Ashley, scaring her.

"W-What is he saying?" whispering to Aedan

"E's a shaman an' also a sare, yer man knows yisser destiny" Ashley wanted a translator for the words coming out of Aedan's mouth. The wizened man grabbed her hand, staring into her palm, mumbling words unfamiliar to Ashley.

"Yer man says dat de fury av yisser people runs through yisser veins"

"Something about my people and fury running through my veins? What the heck does that mean?" but Aedan was too busy paying attention to the old man who carried on, boring into Ashley's palm.

"Yer an' de bald goggled paddy 'ill destroy yisser enemies, avengin' yisser bloodline"

"Bald goggled-wait you mean Riddick? Bloodline? I'm related to him!" Ashley exclaims, desperate for answers as she doesn't understand what either men were saying.

"But wait, yer'av another duty ter attend to" translating the wise man's words, but without warning the shaman slashed her palm with a knife, causing Ashley to yell and back away, watching the man lick her blood from the blood and talking in strange tongues, whispering harshly.

"Owl on, calm down" holding Ashley back as she definitely looked like someone who would hit an old man.

"Yer man says you're blud is black, 'oldin' a demon inside yer, a powerful force dat 'ill 'elp yer or destroy yer in de near future"

Ashley looked at her crimson blood, and arched a sceptical eyebrow "Mate, are you blind? Is he blind? Doesn't this red blood look normal to you?" showing her palm off to Aedan, shocked at what the old man was saying but he could believe that the lass before him was no normal convict.

"Could you ask him what he means by near future? Does he mean like next week? Or tomorrow? Or like in a couple hours' time?" The old man didn't say anything; there was nothing else to her prophecy.

"Sorry juicy, it doesn't work loike dat" Ashley huffed thinking it was just a load of bollocks and a waste of time but then she got a sudden brain wave.

"I have amnesia, you reckon he'll be able to fix that?" the shaman opened his mouth again, almost as if he understood the question.

"Aye, yer man says dare is a theck, black fog coverin' yisser mind, makin' yer uneducated an' slow"

"Really? Shamans say stuff like that? Seriously?" crossing her arms, quite insulted, oblivious to the Irishman who was suppressing a chuckle.

The shaman gestured Ashley to come closer and she did, leaning in and the man reached his frail, shaking arm out to her, placing a soft palm on her forehead and Ashley immediately froze up, her body shaking and tensing and she promptly collapsed to the floor, falling down in the darkness.

Ashley opened her eyes and found herself looking at her younger self, a much healthier and fuller looking younger self out in the dark, patrolling but Ashley frowned as her young self was wearing pink, and a skirt, glaring at it with such disdain.

_**It's been two years ever since Ashley joined Matt's crew and she had become completely accepted into it, able to form a strong bond with both Matt and Aoi. Though she was much happier, she was still so very quiet, only really speaking when spoken to but Matt figured she probably had a shy personality. He did notice the young girl was very into fighting and violence, her eyes would darken whenever an enemy showed up at their hideout but he refused to let her get into a fight. **_

_**Ashley insisted on helping out, wanting to be out there but Matt gave her the odd jobs like carrying supplies and stock of weapons or drugs to various warehouses or people. She was trusted enough to be on night watch which she was glad, reason why she was patrolling the quiet cul-de-sac in the middle of the night. Ashley's bob cut hair fluttered in the wind, and she stopped outside a certain warehouse that she was never allowed to go in that and she always wondered why. She gave a final glance at the doors before turning heel when the doors suddenly burst open, the light illuminating the darkness as a young woman clad in nothing but her underwear dashed out of the warehouse, several men behind her. Ashley spun round, but the woman collided into her and they both toppled to the ground in a tangle of limbs. **_

_**Ashley winced in pain, her elbows stinging as the skin was skimmed off them but something wet dripped onto her face and she looked up into watery emerald eyes. **_

"_**Help me please! I-I just wanna go home! Please!" Ashley's heart was filled with emotion and reached out to comfort the girl but the woman was dragged away from Ashley.**_

"_**No! Please! I just want to go home! Noo!" the men started beating her to the ground, cackling and spitting harsh words at her. Then all of a sudden the men were suddenly swept off their feet, crashing into the ground, the men got up, searching for the perpetrator when all eyes fell upon Ashley. **_

_**Ashley stood before the whimpering girl, her midnight blue eyes blazing as she stared up at the three men, a knife gripped tightly in her hand. Her desire to kill shone through her eyes, and the men were at a lost at what to do.**_

"_**Ashley…hey, calm down" one man approached her and she prepared to lunge when a gunshot rang though them, freezing them all in their steps. **_

"_**Okay that's enough" Matt came out of the darkness, his trench coat blowing behind him and advanced towards the three men. **_

"_**You don't need to treat thieves like this, just send her home with a warning"**_

"_**Wh-Bu-"**_

"_**Enough!" he said sternly, his eyes locking onto the man's and Ashley saw that they had come to some agreement. **_

"_**Sorry" and they carried the whimpering woman back to the warehouse, closing and locking the doors behind them; Ashley watched them intently and carried on staring when the doors were closed. **_

"_**Hey, you okay?" Ashley averted her eyes to look up to Matt and nodded up to him, sliding her knife back into its holder. Matt narrowed his eyes at the knife, undecided whether to take it off her or not but instead ruffled her hair and took her hand and walked back to the warmth of their house. **_

_**While Ashley fell asleep in her room, Matt was sitting downstairs at the kitchen table in deep thought, contemplating everything that occurred earlier, he had told Aoi everything who also sat at the table, beside him.**_

"_**She was going to kill them" he stated with complete solemnity. **_

"_**I'm sure she wasn't…to her they were the bad guys, a mirror reflection of her old guardian, she couldn't stand by and watch them attack an innocent girl like that" Aoi's soothing voice reaching to Matt. **_

_**Matt sighed "This is difficult, should I let all the girls go?"**_

_**Aoi was about to answer but Matt answered the question himself.**_

"_**But we can't, those girls give us the most amount of profit and we lose that profit then we can't survive as we do now"**_

_**Aoi placed a comforting hand on his shoulder and he took it and gave a soft kiss to the back of her hand.**_

"_**Then let's keep Ashley far away from that warehouse" she offered.**_

"_**Okay, we'll do that then but the kid's smart, she probably will figure it out" and they both headed off to bed hoping that their plan will work. **_

Ashley thought the area was familiar, this was where the family got their shipment of weapons from and in return they offered their protection to the group of delinquents, but she never entered the place since she was ordered to stand by in case anything happened.

_**It was another late night and Ashley was on watch but she instead of doing her duty she stood behind the forbidden warehouse and stabbed a knife deep into the wall, carving a hole big enough for an adult to crawl through. She took a glance around, checking the coast was clear before entering the warehouse through the hole and saw a group of girls, the emerald eyed one was there too.**_

_**She crawled over to them, some were huddled together for warmth, some asleep and some crying softly but they all looked up when they saw Ashley who quickly gestured them to keep quiet and follow, which they did with no protest, all eager to escape the dim lit warehouse. **_

_Damnnit Ashley want are you thinking! _The current Ashley couldn't help but think that what her younger self was doing was a big, big mistake. She didn't agree with prostitution or human trafficking and she admired her twelve year old self for doing something like this but she couldn't help but think it'll end badly.

_**Ashley led the group out of the warehouse, outside the cul-de-sac and into her, old home which stood there, gathering dust and still so deathly quiet. Ashley was quite apprehensive to enter this nightmare house again but the girls needed a safe house and they couldn't wander about in the darkness with hardly any clothes on. The girls open the wardrobes and took out Dark's old clothes, putting them on since most of them had no clothes or were revealing much skin. Ashley gave them all cash, it wasn't enough but it was all the money she had been saving from the last two years. They were ready to set out again and she led them to the edge of the poor district but this was as far as she could go.**_

"_**Don't talk to anyone you don't know, and keep running till you get home safe" Ashley instructed, almost biting her tongue since she wasn't used to talking at all. Ashley was then showered with many 'thank yous' and hugs and kisses, and they departed, using the darkness to hide themselves but the woman with emerald green eyes stayed behind.**_

"_**Come with me! You're not safe here"**_

_**Ashley shook her head, taking a step away from the girl who was older than her.**_

"_**I have a powerful family; you'll be safe with me" she insisted. **_

"_**T-They're my family too…I can't leave" Ashley mumbled quietly.**_

_**The other girl understood and gave Ashley a suffocating hug and she too left and Ashley prayed that every girl out there will get home safe. **_

"_**That's a decent thing you did there" Ashley jumped and swiftly whipped out her knife, pointing it at the darkness when a man of Asian descent appeared from the darkness, he had black hair, streaked with blonde highlights, charcoal black eyes and he wore an open trench coat on his bare shoulders and had a large scabbard strapped to his hip.**_

_**Ashley's throat was dry, the man was exuding power and strength but there was an air of nobility about him and she dropped her stance, there was no doubt that the man before was very powerful, someone she would never be able to take down. **_

Ashley gasped as she knew the man and wondered if this was how she met Melissa and ended up living with her.

"_**We were just about to strike down on your 'family' since they had taken one of our daughters but you saved them from the wrath of the black dragons"**_

_**Ashley was confused about the dragon part but answered the man "They won't like what I did though" and feeling a pain of guilt she ran, tears streaming down her face.**_

"_**Then maybe you don't belong there" The man whispered calmly, smiling softly up at the moon. **_

_**Ashley ran, and ran, she had betrayed Matt and wanted to apologize but she wasn't sure if it was a good idea to go back yet. There was a clash of thunders, and flash of lightening and the heavens opened up, pouring buckets of water down, drenching Ashley instantly. **_

Ashley shot up when something wet and heavy slaps across her face, and her eyes widened in horror at the sight of a Hell Hound beside her, an hybrid bred for speed and strength, its black scales quivering slightly but it continues licking her face and Ashley cautiously pets the creature.

"So, this is where you were bitch?"

"Riddick!" Ashley stood up and pointed angrily at him.

"Where the hell have you been? You better still have that pendant!" ignoring the Hell Hound that rubs against her legs, wanting the petting to continue.

Riddick sighs and dangles the pendant, the red eye twinkling at her. "Happy?" he asks sarcastically

"I would be happier if you just gave the damn thing" stroking the head of the Hell Hound distractingly.

"Yeah, as if I'm going to give to you that easily" the pendant had vanished from sight, and Ashley had no idea where he could be hiding it.

"You find anything?" Ashley asks as Riddick shoos the Hell Hounds away.

"Not really. She was here but seems like she was picked up, no doubt by the men who are behind this fucking mess" sweeping a hand over his shaven head.

"You?" he asks

Ashley recalls what happened, she had gotten involved in some fight and met a two strange people but nothing that led specifically to Kyra but she found something else.

"I found a way to escape, up the pit by using the rope…and um well, I talked to this voodoo, vision seeing man and well…he said some stuff, about us mostly, something about how we'll bring the fury out of our black blood and save our people. Crazy right?" Ashley chuckled and placed her hands in her pockets, heading back to the pit while Riddick followed, grinning widely behind her.

"Heh, that is crazy"

_A fellow Furyan? Now that's interesting. _

* * *

**I apolgize if I got the Irish accent completely wrong, if you didnt understand anything like Ashley did then dont heistate to post a pm :D**_  
_

**xx  
**


	6. Confrontation

Ashley and Riddick made their way through the burrows and tunnels and the insufferable heat when a voice called out from behind.

"Ah, dare yer are lassie, yer gran'?" A worried red head embraced Ashley in a tight hug and she instantly remembered that the man was called Aedan, who was with her before she fell asleep, she couldn't really remember what happened earlier.

"Sorry aboyt leavin' yer loike dat, de shaman said dat yer 'ill be gran'. Oi' ad ter scotch peg it whaen dohs dawgs came"

"It's fine" Ashley answered hesitantly, she only got a gist of what the Irishman had said. Aedan turned to look at Riddick who was watching him through his black goggles, wondering who the red head was.

"Ah, is dis de bald, goggled paddy?" Riddick frowned, arching an eyebrow while Ashley tried to subdue a chuckle.

"Yeah…that's him" sighing a bit and looking at Riddick with irritation.

Then all three convicts froze when they heard the sounds of men and women screaming and shouting, alongside the guns firing rapidly with the occasional whistle of the Hell Hounds.

"What's happening out there?" Ashley asked worriedly.

Aedan addressed Ashley, his voice serious.

"Dare are masked tren al' over de prison, untin' down de newest addishuns ter our sweet 'um. Meanin' you're in trouble an' an' yer nade ter git de feck oyt av'ere. Dees guys were packin 'eavy"

"That doesn't sound good" wiping her sweat drenched forehead.

"Oi got a riot started, use de confusion ter climb de pit an' kill de guards, whaen yer git ter de 'angar you're aff dis rock"

"You're a life saver, thanks for everything man!" Ashley slaps a hand of gratitude on his shoulder and giving Aedan a beaming smile, ignoring the fact that Riddick was tutting in annoyance behind him.

"Tis naw biggie me love" his cheeks blushing a little, flashing a wide smile. "Gran' luck ter de both av yer" and he was off, disappearing down the dark passageway.

"So….have any idea what he just said?" Ashley asked Riddick.

"I was hoping you'll tell me Princess" he responded sarcastically

"Oi! Stop calling me princess! The name's Ashley! Ye bald headed paddy!" silence befell upon them, and Ashley instantly regretted opening her mouth when she felt hostility and anger rolling off Riddick in harsh spring waves, a dangerous aura of killing intent swirling around him.

Ashley gulped very loudly and took a step back, holding her hands in front of her, and she tries to diffuse the situation she landed herself in.

"Sorry, sorry, my bad. It was just a joke okay? Let me start my heartfelt apology by describing how awesome you are" sweat dropping from her forehead and not from the heat.

A low rumble of laughter escapes from Riddick's mouth, and he takes a step forward, smiling dangerously when an axe came swinging between the two of them, thwacking loudly into the wall beside them.

Ashley stares at the axe imbedded into the wall and looks to where it came from, and her eyes raked over o a giant. He stood at eleven feet, his lower body draped in some sort of red and white robes, a mask covering half his face. A psychotic grin planted on lips, staring at the two criminals, waiting for them to make their first move. Oh, he was also wielding a thick machete that was almost half his size.

"Oh…Aedan meant 'masked men'. So, what should we do?" swallowing thickly at the immense size and power of the giant in front of them.

"Wait for me at the pit, I'll take care of this big boy" removing his goggles to reveal his silver, jaguar like eyes locking down on his prey.

"Will…you be okay?" the opponent was no pushover.

"Go" Riddick growled with such intensity Ashley flinched and left as quick as she could and left the men to continue their terrifying stare down.

"You're going to kill me?...With what exactly?" the masked man asks, looking down at Riddick who merely tilts his head to one side, considering the best way to kill this masked giant.

Meanwhile, Ashley makes her way back to the pit, keeping an eye out for any more masked men since it appears the prison is crawling with them and she still didn't have a single weapon on her.

Ashley goes round a corner and a gun clicks in her direction and she freezes all movement, and a voice rings out from the darkness before her.

"Don't move" a hooded figure emerges from the shadows, taking a couple steps closer to Ashley. A black gun pointed at her, he too wearing the same uniform as the other man but with a hood covering his already masked face.

"A gun in the face does mean I want your hands up. Now!" his voice was calm, but very authoritative and Ashley reluctantly raises her arms.

While Ashley stood there being perfectly still, the hooded figure slid his gaze up and down the woman before him who was looking like very much like a sulky teenager with her pouted lips. His eyes took in her bandaged arms, her skull metal belt on skinny jeans that clung perfectly to her lower figure, black bracelets that adorned her wrists and the skull rings on her fingers and black flicks of a tattoo over her collarbone, disappearing beneath her black vest top.

The hooded figure scoffed, he couldn't believe that this woman could be a member of the Yakuza but she did fit the description of a tall woman with long curly black hair with white skin and dark blue eyes.

"A rare, exotic delicacy huh?" he muttered to himself and he enters Ashley's personal space, digging his black gun into her abdomen. Beneath the shadows of his hood Ashley could make out a red crescent moon that usual appears at Twilight decorated on his mask.

"Place your hands over there" he whispers, his warm breath ghosting over her face.

"Over where exactly?" she asked cheekily and the man flashed her a teasing smile, one corner of his lips playfully upturned and she felt a rustle of chains and the cold metal of a white gun was pressed against her temple forcing her to look to her left to the wall.

"Over there" he coos softly, and she does so with a sigh while he keeps his gun or guns on her and she places her hands on the wall. Ashley feels the man close in behind her and his arm comes round, and places the barrel of his gun just under her chin.

"One wrong move and you're dead" he whispers menacingingly into her ear. His other hand begins moving over her shoulders, groping inappropriately at her curves, Ashley fought the urge to snarl and attack the man as he moved down her back, over her hips, his hand lingering over her backside longer than necessary before patting at her pockets.

"Oh this is a nice brand you got here" as he extracts her box of cigarettes from her pockets, and Ashley realises that the gun has lowered slightly from her chin and she hears the flick of a lighter and smells a waft of nicotine smoke. It was now or never.

Ashley swung her head backwards, smashing the back of her head into the hooded figure's face.

"Fuck!" both the man and Ashley curse in pain. Ashley rubs the back of her head while the hooded man takes a couple of steps, blood streaming down his face from behind his now slightly cracked mask.

Ashley faces him, but before she could do anything she's staring down the barrel of a black gun, a mere inch away.

* * *

_**Maria fell back against the bookcase, clutching her bleeding shoulder, sliding to the floor, silently bearing the pain while Dark stood before her, her pistol smoking. **_

"_**Maria you need to learn to dodge or a bullet to the heart will kill you. Watch the gun, become one with it, be aware of every movement of the person holding the gun, there are a dozen signs that will signal when the person is about to shoot. You will really die out there if you don't dodge" **_

_**Dark towered over the shivering, small form with a look of disappointment and she turned on her heel. Maria stood up, ignoring the burning, agony in her shoulder as blood flowed profusely from it the wound. **_

_**Dark tipped her head over her shoulder, a manic grin on her face and faced Maria again. **_

"_**Oh? You wanna go again?" **_

_**Maria nodded firmly and Dark laughs before aiming the gun right between her eyes, an inch away from touching her skin. Maria thought the gun was way too close, and went to step back but Dark pushed the barrel closer. **_

_**Maria looked up into her cold, laughing eyes and there was no mistaking that Dark was serious. Maria could die if she didn't dodge and she took a deep breath, zoning out everything except for the gun and Dark. Her ears straining to hear the tinniest of movements, and she then hears the distinct click of the hammer hitting the bullet and she pushed herself to the side, tumbling to the ground as the bullet shattered into the bookcase.**_

"_**Well done! Very good sweetie! Now, next lesson" Dark reloads her gun…**_

* * *

Ashley may have forgotten Dark in her mind but her body never forgot Dark's extreme training as she unconsciously focuses all her five senses on the gun, and the man's movement, waiting for the right signal. Ashley caught a slight twitch of the man's wrist and swiftly dodged by taking a step to the side and using that momentum she spun, while the bullet smashed into the mud wall. Her foot delivering a powerful and precise roundhouse kick underneath the man's chin, knocking him out cold before he fell to the ground.

Ashley whirled round when she heard movement behind her but it was Riddick, who stood there smiling and clapping like he was a damn spectator, looking down at the motionless body. _Bastard could have helped instead of watching _Ashley thought with a scowl on her face.

"Survival instinct…" towering over Ashley "I admire that in a woman" grinning down at her before poking her between the eyes.

"Ow! Riddick what the hell" bringing a hand up to her forehead.

Riddick chuckles, walking off "That was for earlier princess" he tosses over his shoulder.

Ashley stands there growling before following after Riddick but gives out a sigh of relief, despite this forced teamwork she was getting along with Riddick, surprisingly. But she still wanted her pendant back and get the hell back to New Mecca.

Riddick was thinking the woman was spectacular, especially when he saw her dodge the bullet with such ease. He also felt a sense of intimate closeness with her, he wondered if it was because she too was a Furyan and that he wasn't alone with the burden he had to bear, and not to mention he felt sexually attracted to her. It's been a long time since he had tasted the flesh of a woman but he pushed his perverted thoughts to back of his mind as they finally made it back to the pit.

Ashley gasped as the war scene before them, a mess of criminals, masked men, guards and the Hell Hounds killed and slaughtering the other. Riddick made his way through the riot, taking down anyone in his way, Ashley right behind him. They reach the one chain dangling down, and haul themselves up, Riddick first.

Ashley reaches the top, clambering over the edge and when she stood up she saw a scene of destruction, computers smashed and lights flickering. The massive doors were blasted open by something and there were a couple of motionless bodies, guards and mercenaries alike, maybe the odd masked men here and there.

In the centre is Toombs, bloody and bruised, relatively surprised that he survived. He then realises that Ashley and Riddick were standing there and he grips the shotgun in his hand while Riddick takes out a pair of curved, single edged knives with serrated blades. Ashley wonders where he was hiding them.

Toombs throws the shotgun in Ashley's direction who catches it one handed, and looks at him with confusion when he throws a chip card to Riddick.

"My ship's in the hangar, use it to escape"

Riddick gestures to Ashley to follow him as he walks out of the office; Ashley gives one more befuddled look at Toombs before heading out after Riddick leaving the mercenary alone in the room, chuckling to himself as he wonders why he was helping his pay checks.

_**Toombs was running down a dark alleyway, he had finally found the location of a certain group in New Mecca who had become very powerful, but he found out and now he was being chased. Chased by a red eyed monster with super speed, enhanced strength, it was jumping from shadow to shadow, catching up the mercenary who realised that his bullets were not doing anything to harm the creature. Toombs was nearing a dead end and so with his one last bullet he aimed, while the monster stalked him, eyes glowing in the darkness, feral and prepared to pounce on his prey. **_

_**A knife flew from nowhere, plunging into Toomb's hand forcing him to the drop the gun but even in burning pain he heard a voice. **_

"_**Calm down, it's okay. I'm not dead" it was the girl who found him hiding and of course Toombs shot her but he figured she was dead but there was no mistaking the flow of blood down her side, mixing with the rain, pooling below her. She was confronting the monster, blocking his arm with both her arms, it seemed like a struggle till the monster started to look more human now. There was an instant recognition, and the voice of the girl was calming down the monster who lowers his arms, the blade in his hand dyed red. **_

_**The teenager turns, and Toombs sees blood running down the side of her face, her expression hard, and unforgiving.**_

"_**Leave merc, or you will die" her swirling orbs of midnight blue glow in the dark.**_

The girl had grown into a beautiful woman; he knew it was her when Toombs saw her scar through her thick fringe, a pink, healed wound above her right eyebrow. Toombs swore that he will catch Riddick again, when the woman wasn't around.

In the meantime warden and guards were trying to get Crematoria under control, trying to kick out the masked intruders, while Riddick and Ashley had made their way back up to the surface and were heading to the hanger.

Luckily for them there were in the safe, neutral temperature zone between the scorching heat when the sun roasted the surface of the planet, causing rivers of fires and explosions, and the freezing cold when the sun left the planet at three hundred degrees below zero.

The duo made their across the torn up, scarred land and reached the hangar, while Riddick kept watch Ashley found Toombs' ship and boarded it. Ashley sat in the cockpit and turned on the ship's engines and smiles when she hears the familiar hum. She taps her finger lightly on the computer screen and runs a system scan to check any damage, before turning it off again and Ashley walks back to hangar to see Riddick shooting daggers into the far distance.

"I killed him" Riddick simply states and Ashley follows his line of sight and sees the giant from earlier and the hooded figure that apprehended her. This was not good, and Ashley curses herself for getting too violent when she could have diffused the situation with peace, it wasn't like the masked men were after her anyway.

"Er no you didn't, because he's alive" pointing at the giant that lumbering their way.

"I killed him with my teacup" he growls, low and feral and then the wheels in his head click and he lets out a real laugh, and Ashley looks at him suspiciously.

"Mind letting me on the joke?"

"I know why he survived, he's genetically engineered, in other words he's essentially immortal"

Ashley had never heard of such thing and didn't believe him.

"There's no such as thing as immortality"

"I thought so too but I met one when I was sent to Butcher's Bay, fought him on several occasions. He had a fast rate regeneration, super speed and was very strong. He told me he could grow when he wanted to, and die when he wanted to and that there were other bad ass fuckers like him" Riddick crouched a little as the masked men were drawing closer and closer with each step.

"In the end, I made a deal with him since he could never die no matter how much I killed him. A fight to the death and the opponent dies with the first stab" Ashley's eyes widened at Riddick's cruelty.

"You made him kill himself…when he could have survived?"

"Hey, it was a fair fight" a canine smirk on his lips.

Ashley sighs, and cocks her shotgun.

"I'll take the hooded one then and you take care of the big one, somehow" if the giant was going to come back to life then it would be better to finish him off and at least give them a small window of time to escape but Ashley might as well kill the other too.

Riddick whips out his ulaks, liking how efficient the woman was, becoming more attracted to her.

"Good luck" and he's off and Ashley watches the masked men split up, the hooded figure heading in her direction.

Ashley crouched, wondering what the best plan was, and she smirked widely when she got a brainwave. Ashley moved lightly, being soundless as she headed towards her prey.

The hooded figure propped himself above a charcoal black, ravaged rock waiting for the woman to come to him, the woman had royally pissed him off and he wanted revenge. He slowly smoked the cigarettes that belonged to her, feeling nostalgic as the brand were from New Mecca, his old home from ten years ago. Flickers of cherished memories entered his mind but before they could fully form a small rock came flying at him, and he caught it before it hit him.

"Jackass! Those smokes belong to me!" he turned just in time to see Ashley dash back to the hangar, hiding behind it. He let out an amused chuckled and followed, whipping out his guns.

Ashley takes a deep breath as she leans back against the wall, waiting for the hooded figure, the shot gun ready in her hand. He emerges around the corner and her mandibles twitch into a pleased grin as he fell for her trap and she quickly bumps the barrel of the shotgun to his temple and squeezes the trigger, blowing his head off with one shot, his mask flying off. There was no warning, no hesitation.

Ashley searches the headless body and retrieves back her box of cigarettes and slings the gun over her shoulder and heads back to the ship, leaving the dead body behind.

Ashley enters the ship and found Riddick in the cockpit, firing up the engine, not surprised that he's unharmed.

"Where's the rush?" she asks and suddenly shots ring out into the hull, answering her question. She sticks her head out and sees a line of masked men firing at the ship.

"Get us out of here Riddick!" she yells at him.

"What do think I'm doing princess!" yelling back over his shoulder as the ship scratches loudly against the docking supports that hold the ship down. The firing gets more intense, the ship was not going to survive at this rate and then they would be screwed.

Ashley could make out barrels of fuel behind the sea of masked men, and grips her shotgun; she only had one shot and she had to make it count. The ship rocked violently causing sparks to fly at the masked men, distracting them and she sticks her arm out, aiming her shotgun at the fuel canisters behind them. With a deep exhale she shoots her single shot, and the bullet soars through the moving heads of men and penetrates one of the canisters, causing a domino effect of destructive explosions inside the hangar. The ship lurched forward, out of the hangar and was rapidly ascending, escaping from the fiery eruptions.

Ashley collapses to the floor, closing the hatch while Riddick looks over the diagnostics, while Ashley torches a cigarette, watching the stars fly back as they enter space.

"What now?" Ashley asked wearily, flicking ash from her cigarette, wishing there was a cryo sleep chamber so she could sleep.

"We take this ship to get fixed, pick up supplies and maybe interrogate a few people who may know a thing or two"

Ashley blinks, thinking that plan wasn't very effective and would get them nowhere. But there was nothing else they could now; but she wanted to go back to New Mecca and sleep.

Back on Crematoria, the giant stands above the hooded figure, watching his head bubble disturbingly and refigure itself back to normal. The man on the ground gasps back to life and looks up and sees a mocking smile looking down at him and gives the giant a very rude hand gesture and reaches out for his mask on the ground beside him, placing it back on.

"I didn't think they would give us this much trouble" cracking his neck, and standing up and dusting himself off.

"Riddick I understand but the woman? To think the almighty you got beaten by a woman! And not only once but twice!" the towering giant throws his head back and laughs loudly.

"Yeah, yeah whatever, where are they?"

"They've escaped"

"How exactly did they escape? Weren't our guys after them?"

"There's your answer" indicating to the fiery blaze of the hanger that was slowly burning beside them.

The hooded man sighed loudly and rummages for his cigarettes but growls when he doesn't find them.

"Get me on a ship and we'll follow them, they can't have gone very far!" a murderous shadow encircling the hooded figure as he looks up into the sky.

_I'll see you two very soon _


	7. Crash Landing

Crematoria is finally under control of the guards and wardens, though it was mostly due to a person who happened to be passing through with an arsenal of weapons on her.

Melissa had figured that if Ashley was taken by mercenaries then she was most likely taken to Crematoria, the nearest prison from New Mecca. After helping the guards and persuading them she was free to walk around Crematoria and interview a couple of inmates in hope to find Ashley and Melissa was in luck.

"Ah, de snow white beauty aye? Yeah, she wus 'ere wi' a bald goggled paddy, caused quite a storm 'aha" a chiselled, handsome red head told her cheerfully.

Melissa sighed, running a hand through her loose, straight hair.

"I could imagine…do you know why Ashley was with this bald man?"

"Um…I think yer man wus Riddeck but oi 'av naw clue"

Melissa clicked her tongue, Riddick was dangerous and not an easy opponent but why was her reckless friend parading around with such a villain. _Did they team up together so they could escape? _

"They are together due ter destiny"

"Destiny?"

"De shaman 'ere said de fury av their bludline'ill be unleashed an' they 'ill avenge dere bludline"

"Fury?...Furyan?" Melissa mutters under her breath in realisation, she was shocked but it wasn't the first time she was told that Ashley could be a Furyan which was considered an extinct race.

"_**No,no,no no way papa! I will not let Ashley be my right hand, it's too dangerous!"**_

"_**She's honoured to be your right hand and what's the problem? You like her don't you and she's a capable fighter" a man sat on the tatami oozing power and authority, a tattoo of a black dragon splashed across his chest, looking intimidatingly real. **_

"_**Of course I like her, she's like family to me and that's why she's not going to be my right hand man so she can continue being a human pin cushion, or a punching bag or hurt in anyway" a younger Melissa crossed her arms angrily and turned heel, heading for the door.**_

"_**You realise that if you tell her you don't want her as your right hand she'll be insulted and upset"**_

"_**If she says safe then I don't care if she hates me" but she felt a sharp pang in her heart at the thought of her friend hating her. **_

_**Her father sighed, and he looked up at his daughter.**_

"_**She's a spiritual warrior"**_

"_**Huh?"**_

"_**Well I think so anyway, spiritual warrior or Furyans are a race of people. They died out now but they used to live on a planet with the harshest of environments. The humans there had no choice but to adapt or they will die. They became impressive physical specimens, becoming stronger, faster, tougher and more resistant to damage and injury. Possess acute senses, immense stamina and recover quicker than any other human race"**_

"_**It-It would explain how she survived a whip lashing from a very young age" shuddering at the memory of seeing Ashley's long, healed scars on her back. **_

"_**I'll think about it but…I want to become stronger than her so I can fight with her, protect her!" resolve burning in her eyes, a powerful force that will soon lead the Black Dragons and her father was proud as he sat there smiling and nodding.**_

"_**You will take my place and continue the Black Dragons, nothing shall stand in your way"**_

"Missy?..Missy?!" Melissa is torn away from her thoughts and looks at the red head again.

"Sorry…was there anything else?"

"Masked tren were lookin' for dem, on their masks wus a red 'half-moon"

Melissa's eyes widened in shock and her heart began to pound in anger but before Aedan could ask what's wrong Melissa gave him a slight bow before turning around, her long black coat fluttering behind her even though there was no wind.

_The bastards! They come after my right hand man without consulting me! This means war! Soon you will realise the wrath of the Black Dragon and cower in fear. _However despite declaring war Melissa was worried about Ashley, as the girl would probably forgotten that she had once faced masked men before at a failed alliance meeting, things were just getting worse and worse and she was no closer to finding Ashley.

* * *

Meanwhile alarm bells were ringing loudly in Riddick's and Ashley's ship as bullets were raining down upon them. Smoke was emerging from the controls and Riddick hissed in pain when he tried to input a command as the control engine was practically on fire.

"Damnit!" he yelled, looking at the monitor that showed the view behind them.

Ashley was looking through the window at the back, shooting daggers at the two massive space crafts floating behind them, closing in on their ship.

"These motherfuckers don't give up do they?" running a hand through her messy hair, trying to ignore loud alarms that was screaming in her ears. Ashley knew the ship could hold out against the bullets but not for very long and she heads back to the cockpit and sees Riddick at the controls. He's managed to shut the alarms off and again tries to regain control of the ship but he slams both his fist upon the keyboard.

"What?" Ashley looks at him with concern, keeping balance as the ship shuddered left and right.

"They hit us pretty good, the controls are all fried and we've been knocked off course and into a gravitational pull of a nearby planet" growling the words harshly.

"Ah…that's bad right?" a poor attempt on her part to keep the mood light.

"Of course!" he snapped, Ashley thought if Riddick was losing it then this was indeed a situation they wouldn't survive but she was determined to live and get back to New Mecca.

"How about just landing this beast on the planet, least we'll be out of sight from the mask wearing pricks"

Riddick's ears perked up and he thought it wasn't a bad idea and he remembered that long ago a certain blonde co-pilot was able to land a much larger vessel safely despite being veered off course.

Riddick smirked and pulled at the controls, aligning the ship with little tugs to the left or right, keeping it as steady as he could.

"Sit tight and pray princess…this will be one hell of a ride"

Ashley sniffed her nose but strapped herself into the seat beside Riddick as the ship began to vibrate like crazy as it tore into the planet's atmosphere and soon the shaking got more violent as they neared the mossy green surface. The two criminals held their breaths, bracing themselves for the impact.

"Hold on" Riddick yelled as the ship collided with ground with a loud, screeching thud, kicking up dirt and grass everywhere. Riddick and Ashley jerked out of their seats, their belt straps cutting into their skins from the force of impact, Riddick's muscles were tense as he kept the ship as steady as he could and the ship groaned and complained as it slid across the grassy floor before stopping completely still.

It was all quiet and calm within the ship and then Riddick let out a loud sigh and he let go of the controls and cracked his neck before looking at the woman who already had a lit up cigarette dangling from the corner of her mouth. Riddick unstrapped himself from his seat and headed for the hatch door.

Ashley did the same and followed Riddick as he lead the way out and they cautiously stepped outside and found themselves in a large open meadow of green grass with shrubs dotted around, with a dark yet tranquil jungle surrounding them. Ashley heard the scurries and rustlings of small animals and birds chirping happily, she looked up to the sky and saw dawn will be soon approaching.

While Ashley was admiring the pink sky that was turning into a dark orange, as the wind whipped through her hair, sunrise was approaching. Riddick leaned on a lone tree, sitting under its shade removing his goggles and getting himself comfortable.

"You sit and keep watch, I'll sleep for now"

Ashley merely scoffed, pulling out her cigarette and she leaned on another tree, keeping watch but she couldn't help but curse and swear under her breath.

"Keep watch my ass. How the hell are they going to find us in this big ass jungle?" keeping a keen eye on the sky, waiting for the big ships to enter the planet sky.

* * *

However on one of the ship a hooded figure was throwing a tantrum as he was pacing around, cursing loudly and he threw his mask to the side before glaring at the whimpering man who was stood by the powerful weapon that blew Ashley's ship off course. The man let out a yelp of surprise when the hooded figure suddenly appeared before him, as if he teleported and the man was scared for his life when he saw glowing red orbs in the darkness beneath the hood.

"B…L-look man..i-t was a accident"

A gloved hand shot out and wrapped around the man's neck, and the red orbs seemed to glow brightly.

"You better pray that they are still alive down there or I'll rip your balls off" a dangerous low voice emanated from the shrouded figure. He tossed the man to the ground and turned back to his huge friend and the crowd of masked men parted for him like the red sea.

"B, you reckon they're alive" the giant asked in a gruff voice as the hooded figure named B bent down to retrieve his mask, placing it back onto his face before answering.

"They have to be, our lives depend on it" and with a click of his fingers they started to descent and entered the planet's blue sky, their large black vessel standing out but sadly Ashley had fallen asleep lulled by the relaxing scene and the serenity of the place, and not to mention she was thoroughly exhausted from the events back at Crematoria.

Soon enough Ashley's head was beginning to throb painfully as images began flickering beneath her eyelids.

_**Ashley was twelve again and soaking wet, completely drenched to the bone as she wandered the dark streets before entering an abandoned white building of some kind for shelter. Ashley hugged herself to stop herself from shivery as she walked through the vast darkness, her short wet hair sticking to her face. Jumping when a white flash of lighting lit up the large lobby, she kept alert for any signs of movement. The place smelled old and unused, no one had lived here for years it seemed.**_

_**Ashley senses that there was someone in the room with her, right at the back of the atrium and she slowly gets closer but freezes still when she sees a pair of red orbs floating in the darkness. Ashley takes a loud gulp and pulls her blade out, edging closer when another lighting strike and she jumps back, tripping over a piece of debris, crashing on her backside. **_

_**She sits up, rubbing her lower back quietly gasping in pain, "ow, ow, ow"then someone a few feet in front of her chuckles and then all the lights turn on, blinding her for a few seconds. **_

_**Ashley grits her teeth and gets up, and for the first time sees the person who was still laughing before her. It was a young man who was sitting on the tiled floor, leaning his back against the wall behind him. He had silvery white hair that spiked up and was dressed in punk style clothing with his leather pants, ripped tank top with a black trench coat over him with combat boots and chains. While Ashley scowled dangerously at the man he wiped a tear from his red ruby eyes and looked at the girl in front of him. **_

_**He took in her light blue shorts and a white top that fell off one shoulder the end of her shirt tied up into a knot and flowery designed converses. His eyes narrowed at the blade in her hand but he thought nothing of it, the child couldn't do anything to him if she wanted to use that knife. The mood soon became dark between them as they stood observing the other carefully. **_

"_**So, what brings you here to my humble home" he asks sarcastically but Ashley stays silent, noticing that the man had red eyes, something she had never seen before. Her small hands roughly swept aside wet locks of hair from her face while her soft eyelids hid her killing intent. Those dark, midnight blue eyes were staring at him coldly which he found most intriguing. **_

"_**You're not afraid are you?" smirking like a Cheshire Cat, his sharp white teeth visible, Ashley noted that his eyes were glowing slightly and she felt a sense of bloodthirstiness and the scent of a beast from him. She had to be careful. **_

_**The man got up slowly, speaking low and quiet as he did.**_

"_**This place was a laboratory, some pretty messed up experiments happened here. Human experiments. Something went wrong though; their little experiments went on a rampage and killed the scientists here, all of them. Then we all escaped….well except me" **_

_**He was tall and towering over her, his eyes really glowing brightly now and his lips turned up into a animalistic grin, he held a makeshift blade in his hand and Ashley's heart pounds uncontrollably , her fight or flight instinct kicking in as adrenaline pours into her blood and flows throughout her body. **_

"_**You scared now kid?" cocking his head to the side and giving her a sly wink. **_

_**With her harsh eyes she looked for the best way to attack and then the lights went out and they stood there in darkness, only the moon shining through the cracked windows was the only source of light and the man's glowing eyes. A flash of lighting illuminated the shadows and Ashley showed her fangs, full of ferocity and fighting spirit that was completely disproportionate to her small body, a strong and reliable strength that allowed her to rip her enemies to shreds.**_

_**She flew herself at the man, and kicked the blade out of his hand before plunging her knife blade deep into his heart before leaping off him as his body slammed into the wall, the body slumped down, dead. **_

"_**For an murderous experiment or whatever…you ain't all that" her voice was cold but strangely calm, and sounded as though it was suppressing some emotion of guilt and regret, it had also been quite a long time since she killed anyone and she felt...she didn't know what to think of it and immediately turned her back on the motionless body and took a step forward back across the lobby to the door. **_

_**Ashley hears a clinking and rustling of chains and swiftly turns, holding her bloody blade out in front of her. Then it happened.**_

_**The blade was shot into thousands of tiny pieces and scattered to the floor and she's left holding the handle. Ashley blinks and stares at her opponent in shock and awe, feeling tempted to rub her eyes in disbelief. The man she just killed was awake and alive, standing completely good as new as if she hadn't killed him just moments ago. His eyes were glowing ominously aiming a finely decorated black gun at her.**_

"_**Ouch kid, that really hurt" massaging his chest area, **__so I did stab him? A chest plate beneath his clothes? But there was blood on my blade._

"_**You're a riot kid. Fuck, you took me out as if I was nothing" he tightens his grip on his gun, pointing the barrel right between her eyes. His smirk showing that he will enjoy shooting her head off but as he looks at her face he is distracted by her uncaring, expressionless face.**_

_She's about to die yet she doesn't care…is she crazy or stupid? _

_**Ashley narrows her eyes sharply and reaches for her second knife from behind, and holds it out in front of her, ready to lunge. The man's eyes widen in surprise and confusion, the girl in front of him was a total enigma, he couldn't understand the girl and she intrigued him. **_

_Oh? That's it, she refuses to die, __**the man recognized those unwavering, resolved filled eyes, he often saw them in the mirror when he looked at himself. **_

_She's like me._

_**Ashley gets ready to evade the bullets when she notices the man is lowering his gun, and it disappears within his clothes and his eyes have stopped glowing as he scratches his head, tutting ever so quietly before looking at the kid.**_

"_**I can't kill a cute kid like you, just be glad you're cute or things would definitely have gotten messy" before winking mischievously at Ashley who looks flabbergast, **__did he wave a white flag just now? __**She thinks, unsure about the man's sudden change of attitude. **_

_**They both stand there in awkward silence while the rain still persists outside with the occasional lighting and the bells of thunder and then.**_

"_**Achoo!" Ashley sniffles a bit, the cold was finally getting to her and she began shivering again but then a coat was thrown over her head and she looks up at the man who tossed it.**_

"_**You can stay here for a while till the rain stops" he says nonchalantly, not quite sure why he invited the girl to stay. He leaned himself against the wall again, and Ashley takes a minute or so to think before sitting on the cold floor in front of him, wrapping his coat around her body relishing on the lingering warmth. **_

"_**What's your name kid?" remembering the words she shot out like bullets earlier but they did indeed carry a certain child-like quality to them reminding him that though this kid could kill, she still was a child and a girl at that. **_

_**It took Ashley quite a while to answer but she mumbled her name. **_

"…_**.Ashley….and yours?" remembering what Aoi told her about etiquette but it seems that she offended him instead when she notices his eyes flashed redder and there's a harsh scowl on his face. **_

"_**I ain't got a name" he says hotly before slipping a cigarette between his lips, Ashley couldn't help but think he looked pretty cool and she also wondered if she could give him a name. **__But how do I choose a name? Do I use a name that reflects him? Like Red? Or white? No, that can't be right. _

"_**What is it?" flicking his lighter, he noticed that Ashley was staring at him intensely, lost in her mental babble.**_

"_**Blade" is all she blurts out leaving the man very confused and wondering if the girl was alright in the head, mentally. **_

"_**Ash, you're not one for many words are you?" he asks amusingly. **_

"_**Ah-I-A new name…if you want it…I mean if you like itf-ow!" she winces in pain as she bites her tongue accidently, not used to talking for so long. She yelps when she's grabbed by her waist and is lifted from the tiled floor onto the man's lap, she about to protest when she's faced with a fond, endearing smile from the man.**_

"_**I like it, thanks Ash" **_

"_**It's nothing" she grumbles, averting her eyes away from the dazzling smile as she ignores the fluttery feeling in her stomach and the weird warmness that was flowing through her body. Her chin is gently grabbed and the newly named Blade places a chaste, innocent kiss on her soft lips.**_

"_**Eeeek" Ashley pushes herself away from him, toppling back and her head threatens to crash into the hard floor behind her but she's caught by Blade before any serious damage is done. **_

"_**Y-You b-bast-! Wh-k-ki!?" Ashley was stuttering gibberish, not able to finish one word while Blade was suppressing the urge to laugh at her cute reactions.**_

"_**A kiss is a greeting, didn't you know?" he smiled deviously and Ashley narrowed her eyes, sceptical of what he said but she thought he was like a big puppy that wanted attention. **_

"_**Achoo!" she sneezes again; she was going to catch a cold at this rate and cradling her to his chest he lays down, hoping to keep her warm. Ashley is surprised at herself for not struggling; instead she leans into the warmth, wanting more. **_

"_**Ash, if you ain't got a home then stay here with me" he whispers into her semi-dry hair, feeling comfortable sleeping on the floor for the first time ever. Ashley nuzzles deeper into Blade's clothes to hide her face, remembering what she had done.**_

"_**I have a home" Blade had to strain his ears just to hear her.**_

"_**..then I messed everything up" and she told Blade everything how Matt picked her up and cared for her, and how she then saved the girls from the warehouse she wasn't supposed to go into.**_

"_**You did want you thought was right…um but if you want to go and see him then I'll come with you" **_

"_**Really? You don't have to but..thanks" and Ashley felt sleepy as a rush of relief entered her body, she oddly felt safe and secure in this man's presence even though she hadn't known him for very long and she soon closed her eyes. **_

"Blade" Ashley murmured and she shot up from the comfy softness of the grass, slapping herself mentally for falling asleep. Her mind was showing her more and more of her past but she didn't have any actual recollection of meeting these people but her memories revealed that she did. Ashley found it weird and confusing and really wanted to confide with her best friend Melissa who could offer some explanation. Ashley let out a tired sigh and took a quick scan around her, there was no one around and they weren't found yet. Ashley looked up at the cloud filled sky, searching for any ships but there was no way she could tell if they hadn't already landed or not. With the sun in the middle of the sky it was about noon, they've been asleep for nearly half a day, Ashley felt that she ought to wake up Riddick, especially with the possibility that the masked men have landed.

Getting on her hands and knees she silently crawled to Riddick who was still asleep against the tree and then she saw it. Ashley gasped as her eyes lingered on a familiar black chain that was around his neck and disappeared beneath his vest top and her eyes narrowed in annoyance and she clenched her teeth in anger as a single thought entered her mind.

_The fucker's wearing my necklace!_


	8. Escape

Ashley felt immensely pissed off that Riddick had to nerve to wear her important necklace and with that anger that was raging through her she leaned closer to retrieve her chain, slowing reaching for it. Riddick was in a deep sleep, or Ashley hoped he was as she watched his chest rising up and down; she gulped loudly and her heart hammered deafeningly and she was afraid that it'll wake Riddick up.

Riddick cracked an eye open and his arm shot up, grabbing the back of her neck and she froze, her eyes locked on the pearl jewels of silver that were staring at her with such intensity, and she couldn't help but picture different scenarios of her death.

"Didn't think you were so eager" the corners of his lips curled up in amusement and Ashley smiled nervously.

"I-I'm so-mpf!" Riddick yanked her down and their lips crashed together and Ashley yelps in surprise, and a smirking Riddick takes the opportunity to deepen the kiss, diving his tongue down her throat. Ashley's cheeks blush a deep crimson and her eyebrows furrow tightly together as she tries to pull her away but Riddick keeps a strong hold on her, hoisting her up onto his lap and made it so she was straddling him.

Riddick enjoyed his time tasting the girl, his tongue twining around hers; he pulled back for air looking up at Ashley with eyes glazed with desire, and nuzzled against her neck, smelling a strong, enticing scent along her skin. Ashley figured that Riddick had somehow misunderstood something here but she'll use this situation to her advantage and get her chain back.

Though, that was easier said than done.

Ashley was desperately trying to ignore how good a kisser Riddick was and the tingling sensations that were erupting in her body as she tried to release the clasp of the chain. Though, it was exceptionally hard as she tried to hold her voice back from the nipping and sucking against her racing pulse point and Riddick smiled into her neck, thrilled with the large, dark mark on her creamy white skin.

Ashley finally released the necklace but now she had to stealthily manoeuvre it into her pockets somehow. But before she could do anything her wrist is grabbed in a tight, bruising hold and Riddick pulls away, his aura rather dark and murderous as his eyes watch her with such fury that she almost flinches back, biting anxiously at her bruised, reddened lips.

"Don't tell me you forgot our little deal princess?" his voice was laced with venom and his eyes swirling with intense intent to kill.

Ashley didn't falter however; she gave her own icy blue glare and firmly told Riddick,

"You're in deep, dangerous shit here, I ain't getting involved anymore"

Riddick's eyes twinkled with knowledge, "Princess you've been misinformed but you try running, I'll guarantee they'll come after you"

Ashley frowns at this, unsure what Riddick meant and she did not like the –know it all- smirk on his face but before she could ask was Riddick meant, movement behind them caught her attention.

Of course Mike and B befell a scene of Ashley straddling Riddick and it did look quite suggesting as they looked intimidate with each other yet the death stares they were giving each other told another story.

"Would you look at this Mike, two criminals getting hot and heavy in the middle of the day out in the wilderness"

"Very risky B, ain't that your kind of thing" he joked

B growled and gave a swift kick to the gut of the giant who then grabbed his leg, holding B upside down who, the two of them started arguing.

Riddick and Ashley were both lost for words as they stared at the two bickering masked men who were definitely recognisable, what with one being a total giant and the other wearing a hood. Ashley wasted no time and sneakily grabbed a nearby rock off the grass and crashed it across Riddick's temple, knocking him out cold and she stood with her hands up.

"There you go, this is what you wanted right? I'll be off now, bye" she said in a dead pan voice and rushed off into the jungle as fast as she could, ducking under branches and darting between trees and jumping over the thick roots that were hidden by overgrown, wild grass. Soon, Ashley erupts from the jungle and just about prevents herself from stumbling down the side of a ravine that was beside a massive waterfall. Ashley pants heavily, getting her breath back from the vigorous running before securely fastening her chain around her neck.

"Now to get back to New Mecca" she muttered to herself.

A shadow whips past behind her and she jumps when she hears a mysterious voice from behind.

"The right hand man for the next heir of the Black Dragons…and this is all you got?"

Ashley glances over her shoulder, her lips pursed together in annoyance as she scans the emptiness behind her before looking forward and sighing.

_They knew who I was, and that bastard Riddick didn't think to tell me this little piece of important information, _taking out yet another cigarette, torching the tip in one fluid movement before turning round slowly, smoking it nonchalantly, the fumes blowing out through her nose.

"I kicked your masked ass twice…or did you forget?" flicking ash in front of her coolly before placing the cylinder stick between her pearl white smirking teeth.

The shrouded, masked figure emerged from the shadows and Ashley instantly regretted provoking the man but at least she got him to reveal himself though she could feel murderous intent from him.

"Those cigarettes are mine" he said low, and deadly serious.

Ashley scoffed and raised her chin and the mountain wind brushed her long, curly hair upwards, causing it to flutter around her, her messy fringe being swept to the side revealing midnight blue eyes filled with hatred,

"Why the hell are you guys after me?" she asked harshly

B shook his head to snap himself out of his revere as he thought those dark sapphire eyes were familiar and proceeded to point a white gun at her.

"Come along with us and all your questions will be answered"he said with a sly smirk.

Ashley sighed and waved a dismissive hand in his direction.

"Yeah, cuz I'm really going to fall for that?"

"Its life or death woman" titling his head to side, and baring all his teeth as he sneered.

Ashley made a show of thinking about it before grinning mockingly at the man.

"I choose life" tossing her cigarette away and she leapt off the edge of the crevice, hoping that she did not get a face full of rock eyes as the wind whipped strongly around her as she plummeted down. Ashley hit the water with a harsh slap, its cold touch awakening her with its chill and she propelled her body upwards and broke the surface, and immediately swam for the bank and pulled herself over it, panting heavily on the sandy floor.

A shiver racked through her body, reminding her of the cold temperature of the water, and she stood up, untying her red shirt from her waist, wringing it out and putting it on unbuttoned.

"Heh, at least I was able to have a bath" she said to herself with a small smile and then she heard a distant splash, and fearing the worse she looks towards the pool of water and saw a circle of ripples and bubbles.

_No shit! He jumped too! Fuck! _

Ashley ran for it, running into another dark, dense forest not quite sure what the plan was and then she noticed a shiny, crimson blade heading for her neck and time seemed to slow down as she ducked, body sliding along the grass. Ashley got up on her hands and knees cautiously when a heavy foot forced her back down to the ground,

"Princess you got some balls I'll tell you that" a familiar baritone voice floated down from above and scowled furiously Riddick who was standing behind her.

"Survival instinct, gotta admire it right?"she said cheekily and then Riddick dug a heel deep into her back and she closed her eyes in pain as she heard a low rumble of laughter.

Then came a flurry of gunshots which caused Riddick to remove his foot off her to duck the incoming bullets that were peppering the ground and piercing into the trees. Ashley crawled forward before clumsily getting up and running forward.

Ashley growled, shit really hit the fan she thought and she cursed Melissa for making her dump all her weapons because all she could do was run away from very dangerous men who won't give up. Ashley dashed through the trees at high speeds and burst through and out of the jungle into an open field of grass; Ashley looks over her shoulder and see Riddick rupturing through trees, not very far behind.

As she ran she picked up a slender but sturdy branch before facing Riddick and prepared to swing if Riddick got any closer.

"You bastard!" Ashley spat, "Why the fuck did you not tell me they were on my case too?"

Riddick shrugged, and crept closer with his ulaks out and Ashley took steps away.

"Must have slipped my mind" and he lunged at her and Ashley swiftly stepped out of the way and prepared to crash the stick against Riddick's head when she senses movement around them. Ashley and Riddick stood back to back as the two masked men circled around them.

"A lover's quarrel, how sweet" the giant called Mike says sarcastically as he stares down at Riddick and Ashley has the misfortune of facing B.

"Where are the rest of your men?" Riddick growls with his teeth bared, and Ashley places her last cigarette in her mouth, lighting it one handed but she keeps the lighter tightly in her hand, a plan quickly forming in her head as she keeps a sharp eye on B who answers.

"Back at the ship, they've caused enough fuck ups for one day. Me and my buddy Mike are more than enough to take care of you two amateurs"

Both Riddick and Ashley had similar haughty smirks on their faces as Riddick spoke coolly.

"Didn't us amateurs beat the two of you at least twice…or is it three times now?"

Ashley dropped her smirk when a rush of violent wind flew past her, fluttering tendrils of hair around her wildly. Ashley went pale as she tipped her head to look over her shoulder and saw B behind her and Riddick laid unmoving on the ground a couple of metres from them.

_He was quick! Way too quick! What the hell is he!? I can't go up against that! _

Ashley started shifting backwards away from the hooded figure who turned to face her and Ashley was struck down with fear as her mind went blank and her body felt paralyzed by the sheer violent pressure that B exuded. Ashley wanted to run, but she couldn't she was rooted to the spot.

B pulled a knife from his back, an obvious grin on his face as he had them both where he wanted, they couldn't escape anymore.

"I didn't think our plan would work, to think all three of you would be caught together. It was a good idea to kill that kid" his voice was musical and soft.

"Kid?" Ashley whispered as her face was hidden beneath the darkness of her thick fringe of hair

"The fact you dragons go on about vengeance and shit like that was really your downfall, you walked right into our hands" he was in front of the silent woman as her thoughts went haywire.

"The girl at the warehouse? You killed her?"

"Yeah" he said with utter proudness, and Ashley saw red and snapped back to reality, her usual ferociousness flowing within her and she pours all her lighter liquid over her branch and lit it up with her the tip of her cigarette. The branch burst into flames and she brandished her new flaming weapon at B, forcing him to step back in surprise at the sudden change of the woman as she stands her ground, holding the burning branch in front of her like a sword.

B smirks in delight, the fiery presence of Ashley was exciting him and he wished the woman had a proper weapon so he could go all out. Ashley notices Riddick crouching stealthily behind B and a quick glance at Mike tells her he's sitting on the ground. Ashley presses forward, forcing B to step back closer to Riddick before sprinting to Mike as B is tackled by Riddick. Ashley uses her strong legs to leap high into the air above the sitting giant and crashes the smouldering stick hard into Mike's face and he falls to the ground with a thundering crash.

Ashley lands on the soft ground crouched like a cat before standing up confidently and lazily flipped her wet hair over her shoulder and sniffed proudly.

"Hmph…some experiment you are" then she felt guilty as she remembered the silver haired guy called Blade who was kind and warm even though he called himself an experiment.

Ashley looked up when she heard the ring of blade against blade, Riddick and B were fighting furiously and she went to help when her already bruised right wrist was gripped tightly and she's yanked to the ground.

"Uwaa!-Ow!"and then all her air is immediately cut off when the massive body of Mike crushes the life out of her. The scorched half masked grins widely above her, as he only uses one hand to throttle her while her ribs threaten to snap under his immense weight. Ashley was frozen in pain but she gasps when she stares at the ruby red eyes above her but they weren't familiar at all but they were red and filled with fierce, scorching anger.

Ashley thrashed about, wriggling to get away from him and punching him to get off but Mike didn't budge and it was obvious Ashley was overpowered. It wasn't long before Ashley couldn't draw in any air and time seemed to have slowed down, the edges of her vision becoming shadowy as she felt like she was floating away.

As soon as Ashley closes her eyes, air surges through her burning lungs and she takes a deep gasp, sitting up and cradling her ribs in pain. Ashley looks to the side and sees Riddick and Mike wrestling in the ground as takes in deep, shuddering gulps of air.

_Wait? If Riddick is fighting him, then whose fighting…? _

Ashley scans around to find B and sees him emerging from the ground and then she sees chains flowing from his clothes and he's suddenly holding two guns and she unsteadily gets up, wincing in pain as she faces her new opponent.

He starts spinning one end of the chain round and round like a lasso before letting it fly out of his hand, aiming to wring around Ashley's neck and she quickly narrows her eyes, focusing on the chain.

Ashley steps to the side and she captures the chain with one hand and her other hand grabs the white gun and a corner of her mouth curves upwards in delight.

"Bingo"

B clicks his tongue in annoyance when she pulls as hard as she could and he pulls back, determined not to give her his gun but he didn't realise he was playing right into her hand.

Ashley's eyes twinkle in mischief as she steps down on the chain and she pulls one more time and she's able to snap the chain, and both of them fall backwards onto their backsides from the force. Ashley blinks in surprise as she looks at the white gun in her hand and couldn't help but admire the beauty of it as it was inlaid with swirls of intertwined threads of black wires and the butt of the revolver was covered in a silver cap, useful if one wanted to split someone's head in two. Ashley rips the chain off and gets up, spinning her gun in her hand and aims her stolen gun at the livid B who aims his black gun at her.

"This is a nice gun man" Ashley says, keeping a keen eye on him.

"You got lucky you dumb bitch!"

"Someone's grumpy" sticking her tongue out but she jumps when her back comes into contact with Riddick who whispers over his shoulder for her ears only.

"We end things now and run…sneak onto their ship" he's panting heavily, his injuries must be taking a toll on him but Ashley wasn't faring well either, exhausted and out of energy and most likely wounded somewhere.

"Shall we surprise them?" and Ashley instantly read his mind and chuckled.

"You really have made my life hell you know?"

"Heh I'll take that as a compliment"

"Go" he growls and Ashley suddenly ducks under Riddick's outstretch arm as he lobs the stolen machete at B and Ashley fires her gun at Mike. The bullet pierces through his head and his body falls, hurtling to the ground loudly.

Ashley breathes out slowly and gets up from one knee and she grins deviously and gets ready to run when Ashley feels someone very close behind her and her cheerful mood falters. A sharp pointed blade runs along her spin, sending shivers up her spinal column and she takes a deep breath looking over her shoulder and sees B, his hood off and a devilish grin on her half masked face.

"Mike, are you okay?" Ashley's eyes widen when a silhouette suddenly covers the both of them in darkness and she whips her head forward when pain explodes from the back of her head and the grassy floor and the chirping fade from her vision and she falls in blackness.


End file.
